


The Road to Ruin

by Shadowblayze



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Naruto
Genre: Humanized Hiruzen, Ninjas - Freeform, Reincarnated!Harry and Neville, Ripples, Slightly different usage of bloodlines
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-23
Updated: 2016-11-30
Packaged: 2018-05-22 19:02:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 49,375
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6090922
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shadowblayze/pseuds/Shadowblayze
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They say the road to ruin is paved with good intentions and wreathed in well-meaning lies. Will two boys, souls scarred forever by the weight of a prophecy and seeking to forge their own path, unintentionally change everything? </p>
<p>(Courage is not the absence of fear, after all, but the strength to fight despite its weight pressing down against you.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. My Friend, the Fates are Cruel

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They say that history repeats itself.  They say that the more things change, the more they stay the same. They say that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.  They say that words are cheap and that the actions make the man.  They say that time heals all wounds.  They say only the good die young and that cowards live forever.

They say that the road to ruin is paved with good intentions and adorned in well-meaning lies.

―――ᴖᴗ―□―∞―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞―≡―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―◊―――

**_The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches…….born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies..._ **

There were only a handful of people who had rejected or openly opposed the Dark Lord Voldemort and lived to tell the tale.  Fewer still who were due to give birth in the late summer.  So, truly, it was not much of a stretch for the man to find couples who fit the parameters of the Prophecy that his faithful spy had overheard part of and plot a course of action that would remove the so-called Chosen child from his path.

He had always been an intelligent child and had grown into a shrewd, sharp man with an unusually high capacity for magic and the will to wield it.  He had grown up in a filthy Muggle orphanage during the worst years of the Second World War and had been continually denied the chance to stay at Hogwarts- _his home, where he belonged_ \- by the man who now held the title of Headmaster.

Voldemort _hated_ that man. 

Hated the way Dumbledore had looked at him from the very beginning; hated the way the pleasantly smiling man with the suspicious eyes would smile at him and chatter about how Muggles were not all filth _as if he would know_. 

More than anything Tom- _before he had surpassed the need for that filthy Muggle’s name-_ had hated the darkness of his summers, huddled underneath his flimsy bed with no light as the air raid sirens blared and the sounds of explosions tore through the night.  He hated the knowledge that right then- _at that very moment, while he was huddled under his bed choking on his fear that his prison would be the next place to go up in ravenous flames_ \- the denizens of the magical world- _the world he belonged in_ \- were tucked safely away behind their wards. 

Laughing, drinking, and feasting; while Tom felt the ground tremble beneath him as the Axis Powers rained hell down upon his filthy Muggle orphanage.

It was those nights that had instilled within him an irrational fear of death while they also cemented his hatred for Albus Dumbledore and any magical who lowered themselves to consort with _filthy Muggles_. 

Lord Voldemort rose where Tom Riddle ended, and he swore he would cleanse the magical world of such undeserving filth and if those filthy Muggle-lovers thought a baby could defeat him, he would most assuredly prove them wrong.

―――ᴖᴗ―□―∞―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞―≡―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―◊―――

**_.....and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not....._ **

Harry Potter would grow up unwanted and barely tolerated, but protected.  That was enough reason for the venerable old man with the strange robes and the long beard to stand his ground in the face of his friend and colleague’s concerns over the people who would wake up to find the orphaned toddler on their doorstep. 

Though his heart was heavy, the great man who had defeated Grindelwald did what he felt was _right_ and _just_ for the orphaned lad. 

For the man was convinced that young Harry had heartbreaking and terrible fate ahead of him.  Albus knew that the lad must be molded and shaped correctly, lest the tragedy that was Tom Riddle’s descent into the depths of the darkest, most evil magicks imaginable be repeated.

The lad came from good stock, though, unlike young Tom.  Therefore Albus felt that young Harry- who had been saved by his mother’s love, whereas Tom had never known his mother or love- would make the right choice when the time came. 

It was all for the greater good, after all.

―――ᴖᴗ―□―∞―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞―≡―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―◊―――

**_…..and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives....._ **

Voldemort hadn’t been known as one of the greatest wizards in the modern age without good reason and Peter Pettigrew had spent almost three years in the same dorm as James Potter’s son.

_Those facts changed everything_.

When Harry Potter went to duel Voldemort in the Graveyard after the fiend’s resurrection, Voldemort used a different wand. 

This meant that the _Priori Incantatem_ effect was never invoked, because Voldemort was not using the wand that contained the brother feather to the one in Harry’s Holly wand.

Harry was still defiant in the face of death, still borrowed courage in the face of his fears- _he was_ _still a bloody Gryffindor_.

In the end, however, Harry was just a fourteen-year-old fighting against a man old enough to be his great-grandfather.

Harry Potter died at the age of fourteen in a graveyard in Little Hangleton.

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**_.....the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies....._ **

Since his ‘death’ nearly four years ago, Harry had learned a lot of things. 

Things he learned at Voldemort’s side- as he couldn’t move very far from the man- and a few things from when his spirit was pulled to one of the other horcrux locations.

Harry Potter watched the ‘final’ battle unfold with weary, jaded eyes. 

As he was anchored to the mortal plane through the blood Voldemort stole from him during the snake-like man’s resurrection party, and was unable to interfere or even be seen by anyone.

Trust him, he had _tried_.

Now, as he watched the forces that were comprised of his old friends and mentors, battling it out at the edge of the Wards of Hogwarts, he was not sure what to feel.

After his ‘death’ Albus- the man did not deserve the title of ‘Professor’ in Harry’s mind, not anymore- had quickly rallied his Order of the Phoenix and had nearly immediately started cultivating Neville Longbottom to take the fallen Potter’s place as ‘savior’.  Eventually, Harry’s friends had rallied around Neville, pushing the shy, clumsy boy to the forefront of the fight against his will, and Harry had barely been a memory as the war heated up.

Harry really did not have a whole lot of respect for the Order, not really. 

The teenaged spirit had witnessed the atrocities that those the Order refused to do more than stun and turn over to the Ministry had then gone out to commit.  Harry watched as the ‘misguided children’ went out and they raped, tortured, and killed for pleasure after their release or escape. 

Harry’s heart hurt as he thought of how so many lives could have been spared had the terrorists been crippled or killed- or even just effectively dealt with back when they were still children.  Before they became monsters-in-training and forsook all manner of reason and decency or morality.

It would have been a mercy to their victims, if nothing else.  Most of whom could not even defend themselves due to age or being nonmagical.

Harry’s spirit had been there when Albus had bantered with Tom during one of their clashes, and he had witnessed the venerable man that Harry had _trusted_ all but admit that he had raised Harry as a lamb to be slaughtered. 

Oh, the Headmaster had not always known of the horcruxes- or that Harry had most likely been one- but the Headmaster had always suspected that Harry would have to pay a high cost in return for utilizing the ‘power the Dark Lord knows not’. 

The blatant evidence of such an crushing betrayal had stripped away the last of the innocence that Harry had tried to view the world with, and suddenly so many things made sense and it had made him heartsick.

Harry had spent the next months trying to learn as much as possible from Tom, rifling through his mind- being dead and connected to the man was bound to have some sort of perk- and delving deeper and deeper into the dark as he tried to find a way to be free. 

A way to be away from the screams and the lies and the puppet masters.

Turning back to the present, Harry helplessly watched as Neville fell and bore witness to the despair that swept through the ranks of the Light-minded fighters.

Honestly, Harry kind of wanted to laugh at their faces.

_They always were looking for someone else to fight their battles, weren’t they?_ Harry thought scathingly as he watched the unholy glee that spread over Voldemort’s face as the Light-minded fighters began to falter and the stalemate that the forces had been locked in for the past few hours began to turn in the Dark side’s favor.

Then Harry felt the last horcrux as it was destroyed- it always felt a bit unpleasant and Tom always became extremely angry- and suddenly Harry _knew_. 

He _\- Harry-_ was what was keeping Tom anchored.  His connection to the man through the bond of blood that had been forged through the despicable actions of the traitor Wormtail was what was keeping Tom alive.  It would continue to do so, he realized suddenly, years of information and rifling through Tom’s memories finally coalescing and casting light on the crux of the issue; until Harry- the true owner of the Cloak of Invisibility, called for Death to come and claim him.

_The power the Dark Lord knows not, huh?_   Harry thought, a melancholic sadness running through him as he steeled his resolve and forcibly embraced all the anger, sadness and betrayal that he felt towards the world and the magical world especially.  Closing his luminescent eyes as he dug through all the emotions that had burned so fiercely these past few years, Harry prayed. 

His prayers grew more desperate as the anger and bitterness and fear of the unknown swelled within him, eclipsing the love and compassion and kindheartedness he felt for his former friends and their allies as the dark, seductive whispers of vengeful wrath tried to sink its claws into him. 

_You could live forever_.  It whispered gently as it threaded through his soul and tried to ensnare his mind.  _You have the power.  The knowledge.  The **right**.  You could make them all bleed and beg and scream for mercy from your place above them.  What do you owe them?  What did they ever do for you?  Don’t you deserve a chance at happiness and life?  You know how they betrayed you, so why do you want to die for them?  They won’t even know of your sacrifice!  Do you think yourself so perfect, so noble that you-_

Harry was on his knees, ignoring the war raging all around him as he desperately prayed that he would somehow find the strength to follow through with his plan when the faded memory of a red-haired woman flitted through his mind’s eye. 

( _You are so loved Harry_.  _So very, very loved_.  _Mummy loves you, Dada loves.  You are so, so loved, baby_.)

_I choose death_.  Harry thought as his eyes anpped open and he gazed out unseeingly over the field of fighters.  Harry held firmly to the faded memory of his mother’s voice as he slowly climbed to his feet and forced his mouth to move. 

“Death, can you hear me?” 

Then there was a tall Being clothed in black and swathed in living shadows before him. 

Harry smiled then, strangely bright and warm and breathtaking despite all the bitterness and anger that brewed within his soul.

Harry reached his shimmering hand towards the Being that had appeared before him.  “It’s good to see you, My Friend.  Let’s walk together.”  He said, strangely breathless and calm as the maelstrom of emotion faded into serenity.

As his hand made contact with the Being’s the world exploded into a sea and sky of light and color.

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At the darkest moment of the battle, a brilliant light flared. 

For the briefest of moments the visage of a teenager with dark messy hair, glasses, and a dirtied Hogwarts uniform appeared beside the Dark Lord.

Then the sky _broke_ and when the fighters could see once again, both of them were gone.  Shortly thereafter, the Dark Mark disappeared from the Death Eaters, but at great personal cost to the followers of the Dark Lord Voldemort.

Sirius Black, whose name was cleared in the aftermath of the war, maintained that it was the ghostly visage of his Godson who ended Voldemort until the end of his days.

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Death carefully turned the bright souls over in his hands, somewhat reluctant to let them go. 

_It truly would be a shame_ , the Being mused, _to not give the souls who had suffered so much with so little reward a chance at life_. 

Both souls had held power and talent and had still chosen humility, and the Creator allowed Death some leeway in cases such as this.

Hmmm, but where to send them?

_Ah_.

Perfect.

A flick of bone white hands, a thread of will imposed onto reality, and the Being was alone.

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The Great Toad Sage shifted as a chill swept through him. 

Sharp and bitter and weary, but not _evil_. 

Milky eyes stared into the sacred waters of Mount Myoboku and as he gazed into their reawakened depths, the Great Toad Sage smiled.

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	2. There Are No Dreams, No Honor Remains

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Senju Hitomi had married Uzumaki Tenmaru nearly twenty years before the fall of Uzushiogakure. 

The marriage had been arranged as a goodwill gesture and as a renewal of the bonds of friendship and loyalty between the still somewhat newly founded Konohagakure with Konoha’s co-founding Clan the Senju and the newly founded Uzushio with her dominant Clan- the Uzumaki. 

Aged seventeen, somewhat shy, and a Chūnin, Hitomi had been disheartened by the fact that she had been given away to a strange foreigner as a _bargaining chip_.  Back in those times, things had still been moving and shaking as the other elemental nations began to follow _Hi no Kuni_ and _Konohagakure’s_ example. Shinobi clans, who had long been hidden in the shadows and fighting furiously against each other, were still trying to settle their long-held grievances and band together.

So, Hitomi had been rather- er, _difficult_ to get along with in the beginning, as she had enjoyed her life in Konoha immensely.

However, Tenmaru had been persistent and cheerful and kind through it all.  Then one day she had woken up and realized that somehow she had come to love Uzushio and her flame-haired husband with it.  From that day forward she had thrown herself into her married life with renewed vigor, relishing the sea breeze in her golden-brown hair and glorying in the way the tide shone with the lights that reflected off the seals that were imprinted upon the ocean’s floor.

Truly, her only true, lingering unhappiness past that point was her inability to conceive.  Though, Tenmaru liked to loudly proclaim that she was _more than enough_ for him and there were _plenty_ flame-haired Uzumaki running around.

(It had made Uzushio’s destruction all the more heartrending.  To know, afterwards- when Uzushio was rubble and ash and her precious few survivors flung into the wind, that she had _wasted precious time_.)

Hitomi and Ten had witnessed the destruction of the shining city along the sea that they had called home for so very long.  They had fought, along with so very many others, trying to fend off a unified shinobi force made from shinobi of Kirigakure, Kumogakure, and Iwagakure, with supporting shinobi from several smaller- but no less deadly and ferocious- shinobi  villages scattered among them.

Among the last to escape the village, once the invaders had overrun them and no help had come from Konoha, the two of them hadn’t had the heart to continue on to the village of her birth.

Happy together despite everything, the two of them had wandered around, constantly moving to avoid any who might recognize them, eventually settling in a small village in the Land of Hot water. 

There, they finally conceived the child that they had always wanted, and though it took a great toll on Hitomi- who was very nearly fifty and so very surprised she had fainted when she went to the local doctor and was diagnosed- she never, ever regretted little Takeru’s birth.

For nearly a year the little family was happy- laughing and learning and surviving- but then, once more, disaster struck.

This time in the form of the crazed cultists who followed Jashin.  The violent fanatics swept into their small village and slaughtered nearly every single villager in a single evening.

Tenmaru, never one to stand down or give up, bought time for Hitomi to get away with little Takeru, and for the first time since the destruction of Uzushio, she turned her feet towards Konoha. 

Through days and nights and weeks she ran, ever vigilant as even with the threat of the fanatics behind her.  There were other dangers between her and her goal.  Normally the journey to Konoha would take a week, even at the speed of an elderly civilian, but she had a small child with her and the need to for utmost discretion while also needing to provide for the both of them. 

Just a few miles outside of Otafuku Gai, she was wounded by bandits and as she threw herself over her son- _her light and hope and her last remaining piece of Ten_ \- Hitomi begged whoever might be listening for a miracle.

For once, it seemed that the kami took pity upon her.

A squad of Konoha shinobi- most likely alerted by her screams- came bursting through the clearing and quite efficiently dispatched the bandits. 

Just in time to save her baby, but far too late to save her.

“Please.”  Hitomi begged as she pushed herself up against the trunk of a tree and cradled her quietly crying child to her breast as one of them came near to look at her wound.  She knew it was too deep and she was too old, but Takeru-

“Please.”  She pleaded desperately, her shaking hands unclasping her necklace and looping it around Takeru’s neck.  “His name is Suzaki Takeru.  Please take him to Konoha.” 

The shinobi hesitated, as Konoha was pretty far away in terms of taking a toddler with him, and Hitomi wished desperately- feverishly- that she could use her clan name or Ten’s, but it was too dangerous.  There were too many people who would target her little boy if they knew the truth, and she hoped when Takeru was old enough to open her necklace- because she had faith he would figure it out- he would understand _why_. 

“ _Please_.”  Hitomi rasped one last time as blood bubbled up from between her lips and she pressed one last desperate kiss to her son’s hair.  “His father would have wanted it.”

As the light began to blur into darkness and her son began to cry in earnest, she witnessed the moment the shinobi decided to honor her request. 

_Thank you_.  She thought, achingly sad to be leaving her son alone, but fiercely content with the knowledge that he would be able to make it to Konoha, despite her weakness.

―――ᴖᴗ―□―∞―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞―≡―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―◊―――

The Uchiha Clan was the co-founding clan of Konoha and one of its most prestigious.  The Uchiha were one of the Four Great Noble Clans of Hi no Kuni, a designation that stretched back nearly four centuries and was tied to the Ruling House of Jimmu, of which all of the Elemental Nation’s Daimyo’s were directly descended from.  The Uchiha were nearly one-hundred seventy members strong, from the eldest elder to the youngest child, making them one of the most populous clans in Konoha. 

Granted, some of those members were from smaller branches that were four or five degrees away, but the Uchiha were a possessive bunch and did not like to allow any of their blood- and potential _kekkei genkai_ users- outside of their clan’s control.

Still, they did not brand hateful slave seals onto the foreheads of their non-main-house members, so even with their possessive, inclusive habits they were still vastly superior to the Hyūga.

In their humble opinions, of course.

Of their boasted one-hundred-seventy or so members, only about fifty or so of them had awakened and could use the clan’s legendary dojutsu- the Sharingan. 

Knowing the numbers helped explain _why_ the clan collectively disliked Hatake Kakashi for having the late Uchiha Obito’s eye and being able to use it so proficiently.

Uchiha Minami was not one of those who could use the Sharingan nor was she one of the one who actively hated Hatake Kakashi.  The bastard daughter of a Uchiha woman and a Yamanaka clan member- not that the Uchiha had ever felt the need to inform the Yamanaka of her heritage, since they were _possessive jerks_ \- she had dealt with years of thinly veiled insults and outright scorn among her clan peers.  Even her own mother treated her as if everything wrong in the world was Minami’s fault.

Not that her lack of a Sharingan slowed her down much.  Well, when not held to the insane standard of child prodigies who graduate the Academy at age five.  A member of the ANBU Black Ops at just sixteen, with a knack for blending into crowds and getting people to spill their secrets without realizing it, Minami was a successful shinobi, regardless of her clan’s feelings towards her and she damn proud of her accomplishments.

_Che_.  The young woman thought bitterly as she swiped at her eyes angrily and leaned back against the bathroom wall.  _As if it’s my fault I was born with hazel-green eyes instead of black.  Yamanaka usually are some shade of blue to blue-green, what did they expect?_

The sixteen-year-old looked down at the test strip that rested against her thigh and new tears welled up in her eyes.  The tears overfilled her eyes and she tipped her head back against the wall, allowing her eyes to slip closed as she tried to figure out what the _hell_ she was going to do now.

_This wasn’t supposed to happen!_   Minami screamed inside her mind.  _It was just a moment of comfort between two shinobi, nothing more!  And all my contraceptives are up-to-date, so why did this happen?!_

For there in her lap was the indisputable evidence that her brief encounter with Hatake Kakashi- aged fifteen and fellow ANBU operative- had resulted in the conception of a child. 

It had been a bitterly cold night in the Land of Frost, and the two shinobi had huddled together for warmth after the completion of their portion of the mission’s objective.  They had been enroute to the rendezvous point with the rest of their squad when an unexpected ice storm- a regular occurrence, particularly in the winter for that country- had struck hard and fast, forcing them to find shelter and wait it out.  They had been lucky enough to find a cave, but did not want to risk a fire that could reflect off the glass-like surface of the ice and give away their position; potentially drawing out kind-hearted Samaritans and potential enemies alike.  From there things had evolved from the very practical sharing of body heat.  There had always been a tension between the two teammates, not anything near _love_ but not quite purely physical attraction either.

The next morning they had cleaned up and headed out and two weeks later the squad had lost a member and the remaining three were shifted around to fill in holes on other squads.

_I won’t condemn a child to the hell I grew up in, I won’t._   Minami growled within her mind, as the idea of terminating her pregnancy flitted through her mind, making her queasy even as she dismissed it.  The long-held teachings of her clan and the ideals of honor that had been passed down through her family’s lines not allowing her to truly entertain that possibility of terminating her pregnancy.  Even purposefully staging an accident was against her grain. 

Even still…….

_If the clan ever found out that Hatake was the father, my child’s life would be even worse than mine._   Minami thought, as her mind turned to other possibilities and things that she _could_ do without abandoning her ideals.  _They never told my father about me, either.  So, I don’t see why I should have to say anything to Hatake.  Ha, they set a precedent!_  

Minami laughed out loud, the sound short and bitter, as it resounded off the walls even as she grabbed onto the excuse- and it was one, of that she was aware- with both hands and tried to plot out a course of action. 

_Hm._   She pondered, nibbling on her lip anxiously, as she applied her shinobi training to her current situation.  _If I talk to Crow-taicho maybe there’s a mission or something and I can pass of the pregnancy as a Relations Incident……._

A little over half a year later a woman wrapped up in a scarf left a tiny bundle on the doorstep of the main orphanage in Konoha- it was the closest one to the Hokage Tower and the most affluent one in all of Konoha to boot.  It was also the one that was always first on the Academy recruitment tour that ran every March, due to most of the village’s Relations Incidents being dropped off on this particular orphanage’s steps. 

The cloaked woman did not linger, gliding back into the shadows effortlessly as the door opened and light spilled out onto the porch, irritating the baby and causing him to fuss.

_Good luck, sweetheart_.  Minami thought regretfully, her heart wanting nothing more than to snatch her son back from the Matron.  However, knowing what sort of life she would condemn her son to if she took him home to her clan stayed her hand and firmed her resolve. 

_I’ll always be watching over you, my little Hikaru._

―――ᴖᴗ―□―∞―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞―≡―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―◊―――

The day was bright and almost uncomfortably warm, but the steady breeze and plethora of trees lessened the effect of the heat to those who had to be out and about. 

Though, there were fewer residents walking Konoha’s streets on this bright and sunny day, as today was the first day of a new school term for many of Konoha’s inhabitants, including those who were attending the prestigious Konoha Military Academy.

“Konohagakure- or Konoha, for short- the _Village Hidden in the Leaves_ , is by far the most populous of the Hidden Villages.  When one stops to consider that our village was the first of its kind- the one which set the stage for the one-major-ninja-village-per-country standard- the fact that Konoha boasts the largest shinobi force in the Elemental Nations ceases to be shocking and seems more akin to a _given fact_.”  The teacher told the class of twenty wide-eyed six(ish)-year-olds cheerfully, face painted with a bright, engaging smile as he looked out over his class. 

_They are always so cute and well-behaved on their first day here at the Academy._   The teacher thought wryly, _I always enjoy it while it lasts._

“The total population of Konoha rests comfortably at about one-hundred-and-eighty-thousand people.”  The teacher continued cheerfully.  “Of that number, the Konoha shinobi forces- of which you are all training to be part of!- add up to be just short of twenty-one-thousand.  Nearly sixty percent of the Konoha shinobi population are chūnin, while thirty-percent are gēnin and ten percent are jōunin.” 

The class of children _ooh’ed_ and _ahh’ed_ as the teacher held up a beautifully drawn aerial-view map of Konoha- of course it was simply a general one that helped the students get a feel for the size of Konoha instead of an entirely accurate one- and allowed the class a good look at it before turning the page, showing a picture of a shinobi forehead protector. 

“Gēnin are the lowest rank of the active military force, reserved for those who have passed through Konoha’s Academy curriculum.  They receive their forehead protector upon graduation, as it marks their official induction into Konoha Military Forces.” 

The teacher turned the page after ensuring he yet held all of his students’ attention, replacing the Konoha forehead protector with a picture of a nondescript man wearing the official Konoha jōunin uniform. 

“Jōunin, on the other hand, are those who have attained the _highest_ position possible in the regular military force- the ANBU Black Ops are a separate division, though there are jōunin within their ranks.  There is also the rank of Tokujo Jōunin, but we won’t be covering that today.” 

Once again the page was turned, and this time there was a nondescript woman wearing the official chūnin uniform. 

“The chūnin- the majority of the military forces- are those who have trained hard enough to be promoted and trusted to lead squads if the occasion demands it, but for whatever reasons have not been able to make that final leap to jōunin.”  The teacher took a deep breath and shifted slightly, trying to keep the more energetic children entertained long enough to finish his introductory speech.

“Chūnin come in two types, really.  There are those who were on a gēnin team and then were promoted either due to outstanding service under fire or due to their performance during the bi-annual Chūnin Exams.”  The teacher turned the page, showing the class a collage of pictures.  “The other side of the chūnin pool comes from those who were in three-man-cells which failed the respective tests of the jōunin-sensei, but showed enough promise that the jōunin recommended them for the Konoha Military Specialist Training Program, which is what is displayed in these pictures here.  The Specialist Training Program is an intense twelve-week program with an additional three months of back-to-back missions that turns out chūnin specialists at the end of the six months.  Whether those shinobi are in-village specialists- such as those in the Encryption Department or in the Barrier Teams- or shinobi such as assassination or infiltration specialists depends on the person’s talents for various shinobi disciplines.  The Second Hokage created the STP to prevent potentially talented shinobi from slipping through the cracks, for whatever reason.” 

The instructor put down his visual aide and looked out at his class and clapped his hands together sharply.  “And that, class, was your introduction to the Konoha Military Academy!  Who wants to go outside for a while?  Line up behind the blue line at the end of your rows, please.”

The class of children cheered excitedly and quickly moved to obey.

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The orphan known as Kobayashi Hikaru was waiting anxiously for his best friend to come home, feet swinging idly as he smoothed out the papers he had gone over meticulously. 

By nightfall they should be holding the keys to their new apartment.

Hikaru had been left at the orphanage when he was a week old, he had been told, with nothing more than a soft baby blanket, his name, and the words ‘Relations Incident’.

Those words meant that he was an accident, a side-effect of a kunoichi who had needed to use her body to gain information for the village and had become pregnant as a result.  The children were not seen as shameful, rather as the living proof of the kunoichi’s resolve and determination to the village.  There were a few other ‘Relations Incident’ children at the orphanage, and none of them were shunned or spoken badly of for the circumstances of their births. 

Yet none of the overall ambiguity towards their existence changed the fact that they were, essentially, _miscalculations_.

Many of the others took a great amount of issue with their circumstances- even those whose mothers came to see them whenever they had free time, and had only left their children at the orphanage due to time constraints or lack of family to watch them- but Hikaru had always been rather neutral towards the whole thing.  

Well, once he had understood it.

It probably helped that Hikaru remembered having two loving parents, and of being a very wanted addition to a family.

They had been overwhelmingly confusing at first, the dreams. 

It had not helped matters that Hikaru seemed to have manifested a, quite frankly, _crazy_ form of Legilimency-like talent in his new life, either. 

The caretakers of the orphanage had told him that he cried often as a baby, and would scream for hours if he was around too many people.  It had baffled the caretakers then- once they put him in a room far removed from everyone else, as the medics had been unable to find anything wrong with him, medically- to discover that he was actually quite the calm and happy baby.

The staff had merely been happy that he had not been sickly or needy and had mostly left him alone with some toys to entertain himself after that.  Oh, he had intermittent visits from a caretaker to check on him and provide necessary functions- such as changing his diaper- but once his screaming fits had tapered off, Hikaru was quite the easygoing, happily solitary child.  The caretakers left him picture books very early on, followed closely by books with simple words, as they felt somewhat guilty because he was so self-contained and generally self-sufficient once they had figured out how to handle him.

It took him until he was nearly two- and Hikaru knew he held a distinct advantage over ‘normal’ two year olds, what with his rather unique situation- to puzzle out what was happening and how to manage being around more than a single person at a time without wailing like a- well, baby.  The dreams were annoying- as they were all out of order and muddled and generally unpleasant- but careful concentration and experimentation had allowed him to mentally organize them.  As he began to organize them, things began to make sense, and it was after he had cleared the bulk of the ‘clutter’ from his mind that he had discovered his Legilimency-like ability.

Oh, there had been moments of pure panic about seemingly being born into a different world with a strange new body and memories that were far too old, but he could feel the feeling he had always associated with his magic creeping through his veins- it was different somehow, incomplete and somehow fuller, but it was _there-_ and that was enough for him.

After all, he had technically been _mostly_ _dead_ for nearly _half a decade_ before he had _actually died_ , so really, stranger things had happened to him.

The easiest way to describe what had been happening was that his mind sensed other minds near him and then forged a psychic connection of some sort.  Unfortunately, being too young to understand what had been happening, his mind had been latching onto everyone’s mind within his range, and the connection was so uncontrolled and unstable that it had been overwhelming his baby-brain.  The ability only had a certain range that it could sustain, so once he was far enough away his mind could not latch on to someone. 

The dreams had actually been a kind of shield, he had figured out later, as babies spend an exorbitant amount of time sleeping. 

Still, once Hikaru had realized what was happening he had immediately begun to experiment with Occlumency. 

Tom had known several forms of Occlumency and as Harry he had witnessed Tom using Legilimency on a number of fellow Occlumens.  Therefore, Hikaru had gleefully mashed all of these forms and ideas together until he found a method that worked best for him. 

It was a relief- being able to be around more than one person at a time without his mind reflexively latching onto them- as instead of just ‘reading’ indistinct thoughts or strong feelings, as true Passive Legilimency would have netted him- Active Legilimency required eye contact- he could actually rifle through the person’s active thoughts and their associated memories. 

Hikaru’s memory already seemed much clearer- though he attributed most of it to being a baby and having a more mature mentality to draw from. 

So after his mind had been sufficiently shielded he had begun to experiment how to open his defenses and concentrate on one person at a time.

That was how he had discovered that he was not alone in this crazy ‘next great adventure’.

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For Takeru, the dreams had started after he had been brought to Konoha.

Flashes or snippets of broken moments in time interspersed with memories.  Memories of a man with crimson hair and twinkling violet eyes and a brownish-blonde haired woman’s bright laugh before the flashes became nightmares about bandits and the woman’s- _his mother’s_ , his mind always supplied later- sweet smile just before she died. 

And those were just from the newest set of memories.  The older ones were even grimmer and held no wonderful warmth and brilliant affection.

It had been scary and frightening- especially before the old memories had settled into place- but he remembered his mother’s frantic whispers about not drawing attention during their time on the run long after his child-like mind should have forgotten such things.

Takeru had no intention of drawing unwanted attention to himself.  The last thing he wanted was for history to repeat itself.

A quiet boy, he was not picked on much, but he also was not really noticed, either.  Yet another nameless child in the crowd, easily forgotten and generally unremarkable in every way.

Then the orphanage’s slightly odd toddler- a tiny boy with the bright white hair and startlingly green eyes that looked far too aware and aged to belong to such a cherubic-looking child- had sauntered into his quiet life. 

There, in Takeru’s usual corner of the yard where he secretly grew any type of greenery that he could get his tiny hands on- lessons and memories of Neville coming back to him more and more as he grew older- the other had plopped down next to him with nary a by-your-leave.

“Nice to know I’m not alone.”  The white-haired toddler had remarked, running careful fingers over the petals of a white flower before turning those bright green eyes onto Takeru.  “Sprout taught us well, hm?”

The trowel had fallen from Takeru’s limp fingertips, and he had vaguely noted that he was shaking, but the white-haired toddler had held out a hand to him despite Takeru’s non-responsiveness.  “Kobayashi Hikaru, formerly the Boy-Who-Lived.”  The other had said steadily, lips quirking up into a strangely familiar wry, sardonic smirk that looked entirely out of place on a toddler.

Something long-knotted and tensed had eased inside Takeru’s chest as his mind sluggishly processed the slowly-connecting dots. 

Takeru had fairly beamed as reached out with his own hand and clasped it with Harry’s- Hikaru’s.  Suddenly everything seemed so much _brighter_.  Because if there was anyone Neville- _Takeru_ \- wanted to have followed him to this strange new world that was different and familiar and frightening all at once, it was Harry Potter. 

Unlike what most would expect, Neville had never blamed Harry for dying.  Not when Neville had gotten an unpleasant, up-close-and-personal view of Harry’s side of things.  

Unexpectedly thrust into life-or-death situations and battles that he had never wanted and had never been trained for.  Harry had endured four years that were mostly torment, only to die in an event meant for _adults_. 

Neville had empathized with him; the boy who had been torn from the wizarding world during his toddlerhood only to reenter it with every eye watching and every tongue ready to tattle. 

Most of Harry’s suffering had been due to an old man with too much power, the best of intentions, and a _shitty_ _Prophecy_. 

Or, inversely, an old man with too much power, the _worst_ of intentions, and a _shitty_ _Prophecy_.

“Let’s do things on our terms this time, eh?”  Takeru said as he released the other’s hand and leaned back, strangely light and delighted to have a companion who truly understood.

The smile on the toddler’s face was disturbingly angelic when one accounted for the vicious light in his eyes.  “Let’s.”  He agreed firmly.

―――ᴖᴗ――

Suzaki Takeru and Kobayashi Hikaru, to the bemusement of everyone, had been best friends ever since. 

The pair made quite the sight. 

The tiny, snow white-haired, startlingly green-eyed toddler who trotted faithfully alongside the somewhat tall, broad shouldered boy with the deeply hued violet eyes and ash blonde hair with the subtle threads of red in it when the sun glanced off of it just right.

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So, after Takeru had turned six and the chūnin had come around for the Konoha Military Recruitment Drive, he had already talked about things with Hikaru and put his name on the list.

This time around they’d be soldiers because they _wanted to;_ because they wanted to carve out their own path and protect each other’s backs in this crazy new world.

Takeru turned around and headed back towards Hikaru after being given his packet of papers which contained all the information about Academy registration, the monthly stipend given to Academy students, and how to apply for housing. 

Academy students were not only allowed to move out of the orphanage, but actively encouraged to, as the Oversight Commission felt that the responsibility helped the future shinobi mature faster.  The classes were signed up for the rotation prior to the Academy and since Takeru had passed the tests, neither boy anticipated any issues with receiving their stipend.

Hikaru already had seven strategies in order to convince the orphanage that the he was mature enough to live with Takeru.

Takeru sort of pitied anyone who tried to stop the genius little midget.

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	3. The Arrow Has Left

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: As far as I can tell, Neji was branded with the Caged Bird Seal on Hinata’s third birthday, as was custom. However, the Hyūga Incident occurred an unspecified amount of time later.  
> Creative license. Woot~!  
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“Wow, this place is really nice!”  Takeru whispered to Hikaru as the Landlord hovered anxiously at the doorway, throwing furtive looks to his left when he thought they weren’t paying attention.

The floors were scuffed, but a little hard work and they would clean up nicely.  There were cobwebs and other nuisances, along with about a decade’s worth of dust, but the refrigerator worked, and the stove was a nicer model.  The washer and dryer were a stacked set all the way at the back of the apartment, but the fact that the place even _had_ a washer and dryer was pretty amazing, considering the price.

The _genkan_ was fairly small, but it had a fold-out door that could be used to prevent whoever was at the door from seeing into the apartment proper.  The living room, the next room after the _genkan_ to the left, was fairly spacious and had a decent-sized window in it with a good view of the street.  The kitchen appliances, counters, and cabinets were on the same wall as the window, until you reached the dividing wall which held the refrigerator.  Behind the diving wall was where the washer/dryer combo and the tiny space that served as a laundry room were located.  There was a small western-style table in the kitchen space, with only one chair, but that was easily remedied. 

To the right, from the _genkan_ was the entryway to the apartment’s only ‘official’ bedroom, which was simply a room about the size of the living room with a recessed area that could potentially serve as a closet.  Passed that was a smaller room with bookshelves, presumably to be used as a small study or work area. Just passed that room was the bathroom, which shared plumbing with the apartment next door, and was big enough to hold a tiny shower _and_ a decent-sized tub.

The boys had checked to make sure that there was hot water, that there were no huge nests of unfriendly insects, and that all the appliances worked.

Everything was fine- or at least serviceable and decent.

“So why is this place so cheap?”  Hikaru muttered to Takeru.  All the other apartments that they had looked at were _way_ tinier with far less space and fewer amenities, yet averaged about _double_ what this place was going for.

“Excuse me, boys, but do you wish to rent the apartment or not?”  The Landlord asked somewhat shortly, a bit understandable since they had been blatantly checking all the taps and such.

“The rent is a fixed rate, correct?”  Takeru asked at Hikaru’s mental prodding.  Since Takeru had been used as a test dummy for Hikaru’s new Legilimency-like ability many, many times it was a rather smooth transition between Hikaru adding the suggestion to Takeru’s mind and Takeru asking it out loud. 

Hikaru was rather annoyed at not being able to ask himself, and did not particularly enjoy dropping foreign thoughts into Takeru’s mind, as he quietly feared being able to influence another’s thoughts- even if at the moment it was just Takeru and _he_ did not mind.  But there was a huge difference between being a three-year-old who could talk in full sentences and be around very few people and a child prodigy, and neither of them wanted that sort of scrutiny.

So, Takeru was asking all the questions even though Hikaru came up with most of them.

“Yes.”  The man replied tersely.  “But you have to sign a five-year lease.”

Takeru’s eyebrow rose as he regarded the man carefully.  “Put in a clause that says that we have the right to forfeit the lease if you fail to maintain your duty as Landlord.”

The man’s face turned stony and an angry flush started creeping up his neck, but another glance to the left and he sighed.  “Agreed, but you must give me the first three months’ rent as a deposit.”

Takeru flicked a quick look at Hikaru, but he was already set on this apartment.  Fortunately the boys had earned some money from running errands and such, so they were not entirely dependent on the stipend and could afford the extra cost.

“Well, let’s get this over with.”  Takeru said and the man smiled sickly at him.

“Right.  Let’s just finish down in my office, shall we?”  Then the Landlord spun on his heel and began to quickly walk away.

Takeru’s other eyebrow rose to join the first, but he shut the door behind Hikaru and scooped the other up so that they could catch up to the rapidly-moving Landlord.

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The next few weeks slipped by fairly quickly as the boys adjusted to life outside of the orphanage.  For all of their mental maturity, actual freedom was still a rather new, liberating if somewhat scary concept. 

Learning to write and read proficiently in their new language was a little difficult, but not overmuch.  Hikaru often helped Takeru with his homework, the information from the textbooks and Takeru’s notes making the tasks nearly laughably easy for him.  Neither boy wanted to forget their first language, so they took to writing the assignments down in English as well as the native dialect of Japanese, both to help keep their English skills fresh and to assist in memory retention.

Since Takeru was allowed to go to the shinobi library, in the general section at least, he took to visiting after the Academy let out each day and taking the maximum allowed five books home, only to turn around and repeat the action the next day with a new set of books.

Back at the apartment, Hikaru was doing his best to make it a bit homier while also brainstorming about ways they could supplement their income.  The stipend was only meant for one person, after all, and even though the orphanage had allowed Takeru to take Hikaru with him- it was a well-known fact that the boys were best friends and that Hikaru was perfectly content to be by himself with a book or two- that did not mean that the stipend had been increased.  When Hikaru turned six and was able to enroll at the Academy, then they both would be receiving stipends, but until then their financial outlook was rather bleak.

According to the books- at least, the ones from the library which were at least a year or two ahead of Takeru’s current classes- the new world that they had found themselves in had those who could use chakra.  Chakra was what they called the mixing of spiritual and physical energies, and it was directed via the use of handsigns into various jutsu. 

There were five major elements that shinobi jutsu typically operated in: Wind, Lightning, Fire, Earth, and Water.  There were some _kekkei_ _genkai_ that used a mix of the elements, but it seemed as if shinobi techniques mostly could be boiled down to those five key elements.

However, Hikaru had once been Harry and Takeru had once been Neville, and they had been _wizards_.  Therefore, they were not exactly thrilled with the idea of someone else doing their thinking for them and were determined to recreate at least a few of the abilities that they had possessed before chakra. 

The idea of being able to use some of those abilities to make money was also a motivation.

The absolute last thing they wanted to do, though, was draw too much attention to themselves.  Eventually they wanted to be successful shinobi in their own right, not because of a shitty prophecy or some old man’s grand design.  Hikaru’s Legilimency-like talent had uncovered several unsavory types who would be more than happy to use them, for the good of the village or for their own greed or somewhere in between, and the very last thing they were going to let happen was for another puppet master to sink their claws into them.

“I hate to say this, oh ancient one, but it still looks like a busted up table to me.”  Takeru drawled from his sprawled position on the futon in their living room as Hikaru attempted to glare the broken table into submission.

“Stop referring to me as an ‘Old Man’!”  Hikaru snapped half-heartedly at his friend, running a small hand through his snow-white hair in frustration.  “I was born with hair this color, _jerk_.”

“Hmmhmm, whatever you say.”  Takeru chirped insincerely, dropping his gaze back to the comic book- _manga_ \- that he had borrowed from the library.

Hikaru huffed and toed the busted table they had salvaged from a trash collection point moodily.  Sometimes his body’s age overcame the mature mentality and he got cranky or unreasonably upset.  Thankfully those bouts of childishness happened to Takeru as well, so at least he was not alone.

That still did not stop the surge of annoyance that swelled up within him as his eyes stung with tears.

“Dammit why won’t it just work?”  He burst out finally, throwing his hands up and glaring at the ceiling petulantly as his face flushed hotly and a few frustrated tears slipped out.

“Uh, Hikaru?”  Takeru said hesitantly.

“What?”  Hikaru snapped out, turning to glare balefully at his friend.

Takeru pointed in the direction of the table and raised an eyebrow.  “Congratulations.”  He deadpanned beautifully.

Hikaru blinked stupidly a few times before finally glancing down at the mostly-repaired table.  Only single legs had been repaired, but the floor around it, part of the wall, and even a bit of the ceiling were suspiciously shiny and new-looking.  “Huh.”  Hikaru muttered dazedly.  “Now I just have to figure out how to do that _on purpose_.”  Hikaru wavered a bit.  “Whoa.  I feel really tired all of a sudden.”

“And figure out how to aim it.”  Takeru pointed out cheerfully.

“You are no longer my favorite person.”  Hikaru sniffed imperiously as he spun on his heel and headed for the bathroom,, fully intending on relieving himself before slipping in a nap.  “Make you own dinner.”

“H-Hey wait!”  Takeru yelped, vaulting up towards Hikaru’s retreating frame quickly.  “Aw, c’mon, old man!  You know I can’t cook!”

Hikaru snapped the bathroom door shut with a flourish.

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The first time they ran into their neighbor he was covered in paint and running from some rather angry looking people in Academy uniforms.  The wild mop of blonde hair which framed the tanned face with three delicate, whisker-like markings on his cheeks had careened around the corner, crashing into Hikaru, before disappearing around the corner in a blur of white t-shirt and forest green cargo shorts.

The second time the two had just come from the secondhand shop, where they had sold the table and a few other smaller things that Hikaru had managed to repair.  They had been headed to the grocer who was located three streets down and two streets over from their apartment when a merchant in one of the open-air stalls tossed the blonde out into the street, a painted mask following shortly thereafter.  The blonde yelled something at the man, swiped up the mask, and took off running. 

Everyone had stopped to watch, but no one said anything about the man’s actions.  In fact, most of them looked viciously satisfied or darkly vindicated. 

It had reminded Hikaru rather uncomfortably of the Dursleys.

“Be better off without that little freak.”  The man muttered to himself before his eyes landed on Hikaru and Takeru.  “Can I get you nice boys anything?”  He asked them with a kind smile.  “The mid-summer festival is almost here, you know!”

“Not right now, thanks.”  Hikaru murmured, tugging at Takeru and leading the other boy away from the area.

The third time they met the blonde, it was on the roof of the apartment building.  Like most buildings in the residential sector, their apartment building had four floors and an open roof.  There were two apartments per section, so the roof was divided into eight sections, one for each tenant.  Some people used the space to hang their laundry, while others chose to make small sitting areas or mini-gardens.  A lot of people did not like to bother with trying to keep a garden on the roof a building watered and tended when vegetables were fairly cheap and flowers required a great deal of care in the Fire Country sun.

Hikaru, however, was on a budget and hard work was something he was more than willing to do, so long as it saved them some money.  Fortunately for the duo, none of their neighbors seemed to be overly interested in the rooftop plots, save for Mrs. 1-L who liked to walk up once in a while and hang her sheets out to dry in the bright _Hi no Kuni_ sunshine.

Their apartment was on the third floor, on the right side.  So their roof plot was the third one down on the right.  Hikaru had spent several days coming up with containers that could be staggered and stacked so that they could get the most out of their tiny little plot.  The seedlings had been littered all over their apartment in tiny containers and were finally ready to be planted.  It took them two days to get the containers, the soil, and the bits and bobs they needed set up so that they could get everything planted up to the roof.  It was rather late in the year, but Takeru’s knack with plants had carried over and Hikaru had had plenty of experience with gardening as Harry.

They were sitting back, discussing whether they should suspend the tomato plant holders across the plot with ninja wire so they could plant some extra onions and potatoes- which would require yet more trips to bring up more soil- or if they were done with planting for the time being.  Their thriftiness had won out and they had just resigned themselves to another few backbreaking trips to the area that they had gotten the soil from when the door to the roof slammed open and the blonde from the other day stormed out, a furious look on his face and the beginnings of tears in his eyes.

“Hey, are you alright?”  Takeru asked.  Because it did not matter that he was now in a world full of child soldiers, suspicions and assassins; the shy boy that everyone overlooked and counted out was still very much a part of him.  Neville had spent many nights with that sort of frustration and helpless rage painted across his face.  Hikaru, too, was looking over in concern as Harry had been noticed but never seen; thrust into the forefront of conflicts through a sense of duty and desperation, all the while being entirely helpless and pitifully alone.

It is not something that they could- would- ever forget or just get over, really, and no matter how strong they became or how fast they ran those moments would always, forever be etched into the fabric of their very _being_.

The blonde looked up at them- wary and hopeful and angry all at once.  Blue eyes bright with unshed tears and a thousand unvoiced screams, and it made something inside Takeru’s chest _freeze_ and _ache_ to see such a battle-worn look on the face of someone who was made to smile.  It was just a thought, a flittering moment within his mind, but as he glanced at Hikaru, Takeru knew that his friend could feel it too.  The sunshine-like warmth that seemed to emanate from the blonde’s very being, bright and cheery like the first rays of light after an impossibly dark night or that moment of triumph after a thousand failures. 

“Do you want to help us plant tomatoes?” Hikaru prodded gently when the blonde didn’t answer after a long, heavy moment.   The cautious smile and relieved tilt of the blond’s shoulders as he brightened and bounced over to them made all the work they are about to do so very, very worth it.

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“Ugh!”  Naruto groaned tiredly, flopping down in a boneless heap beside Hikaru while Takeru fussed with the placement of their newest plants.  “I have _never_ been so tired.  I think I might actually be dead.”

Takeru snorted in amusement and Hikaru grinned cheekily at the blonde.  “You probably _wouldn’t feel so dead_ if you hadn’t decided to carry twice as much as Takeru.”  He tells the blonde wryly, largely unsympathetic to the blonde’s moans of agony.

Naruto raised himself up onto his elbows and pouted.  “He can carry two buckets per hand.  _How_?”

“I’m just that amazing, shrimp.”  Takeru interjected cheerfully from his place by the peppers.

“I am way more awesome, believe it!”  Naruto crowed excitedly, pumping a fist in the air and then grimacing as he felt the dull ache in his muscles.  “Urgh.”  He groaned pitifully.

“Takeru has broad shoulders and a decent amount of muscle, shrimp.”  Hikaru pointed out reasonably to the blonde boy.  “He is also taller.”

“Stop calling me shrimp, old man!”  Naruto burst out in annoyance, casting a side-long glare at the white-haired boy.

“Don’t call me an _old man_!”

“Don’t call me a shrimp!”

“Children.”  Takeru broke in to the childish argument smoothly, looking ridiculously amused and exasperated at the same time.  “Let’s just take a moment to enjoy the fact that we’re done, alright?”

Both boys scowled at each other for a moment before breaking out into slightly reluctant, but excited smiles as they proudly surveyed out over the results of their hard work from over the last couple of weeks.  Naruto’s jiji had arranged for all the plots that were not being utilized to be at their disposal.  Well, Naruto called him ‘jiji’, but he only came to see Naruto once every three months, so Hikaru and Takeru figured it was an older, distant cousin or something like that.  At any rate, the man had gotten them written permission from the Landlord to use all but the plot that belonged to Mrs. 1-L.  So now their little garden took up seven plots, and with the space conservation they had going on, that was a _lot_ of fruits and vegetables- they even had a small herb garden now!  Part of it was for cooking herbs, and part of it was for medicinal herbs.

“I still can’t believe that we’re finally finished.” Naruto moaned.  “I thought it was going to take _forever_!  And all for icky vegetables!”  Naruto’s face screwed up into an expression of comical disgust, causing Takeru to snigger as he wiped his hands clean and ambled over to the other two.

Hikaru idly swatted Naruto over the head and gingerly rose to his feet.  “You need vegetables unless you want to be a _shrimp_ for the rest of your life, blondie.”  Hikaru idly waved off Naruto’s vehement exclamations about the amazingness that was Ramen and headed for the roof door.  “I am thinking about something simple for supper.  We still have fish in the ‘fridge that we caught the other day and there is some leftover rice that I can reheat.  You eating with us, Naruto?”

“Heck yeah!  Believe it!”

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Time slipped by quickly, and before they knew it May came, and the excitement for the longest break in the Academy’s school year rose to a fever pitch. 

Even though it was not until nearly the end of July. 

Hikaru, however, was not a part of the Academy yet and so the white-haired boy was cheerfully blackmailing his two friends into studying at the same rate they had been before. 

Since neither Takeru nor Naruto could cook, Hikaru would refuse to make their favorite dishes unless they did the worksheets he put in front of them.  The worksheets were Hikaru’s Revised Versions, as the white-haired boy tailored them to his two friends’ learning needs.  While Harry had never been an outstanding academic, Hikaru was finding the Academy curriculum almost laughably easy and he hoped that the physical training would be more difficult as the older two progressed or he was going to be insanely bored when he finally got old enough to attend the Academy himself.

“Why are we cooped up inside studying boring old books instead of doing something cool- like pranking!”  Naruto whined as Hikaru thrust another worksheet in front of his nose.  The boys were sitting in the living room, with the large window thrown open to let in as much of the breeze as possible.  Pencils, erasers, and books were being used as weights to keep the loose-leaf sheets of paper from escaping, but apparently Naruto had had enough.

“Even I am bored, ancient one.”  Takeru added, somewhat hesitantly, hurriedly continuing with.  “I get that this stuff is important, and you really make things a lot easier to understand than the Academy teachers-“

“That’s for sure!”  Naruto butted in enthusiastically, waving his arms around excitedly and bouncing in his seat.  “I totally don’t get what they’re saying most of the time, but your notes and explanations are _waaaaay_ better!”

“-but I just can’t really sit still and focus right now.”  Takeru finished somewhat lamely, biting his lip and looking down anxiously.

Hikaru opened his mouth to reply- hurt and somewhat angry that they really were not appreciating his hard work in tailoring everything for them- when he was rather unpleasantly reminded of being on the other side of the argument.

His mouth clicked shut and silence reigned for a few moments.

_I can’t believe I got so caught up in learning stuff that I forgot being on the other side of things!_ Hikaru mentally lamented, catching Naruto’s anxious shifting and Takeru’s somewhat forlorn, downcast gaze through quick glances around him.  _Hm, what to do…._

“I’ve got it!”  Hikaru announced decisively after a long moment. “I know a way to make everyone happy.”

Naruto brightened and Takeru perked up as well.  “Oh?”

“Tell us!”

Hikaru’s grin turned sharper- or, well, as sharp as a three-year-old’s grin can turn.  “Yep!”  He belted out cheerily.  “This is what is going to happen……”

Takeru and Naruto leaned forward in anticipation as Hikaru explained his idea.  By the end Takeru was grinning widely and Naruto was nearly vibrating with excitement.

This was going to be awesome!

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“You are not prepared, mwahahaha!”  Naruto spoke in his most creepy evil-villain voice, only to yelp when someone smacked him on the back of the head.

“Quiet, blondie.”  Hikaru hissed to his friend.  “This is our most daring prank yet; _no mistakes_ or we are going to be in a heap of trouble!”

“Agreed!”  Takeru echoed from Naruto’s other side.

“Awww, man!  But you _gotta_ say something cool when you’re about to do a prank this awesome!”  Naruto whined quietly.

The past month had seen a wave of rather ingenious, creative pranks sweeping across Konoha.  Well, the merchants, at least.  The victims were all confused about whom the culprits were, but word had spread like wildfire and now all of the merchants were rather twitchy in the mornings.

Hikaru had convinced Naruto to continue to do a few of his ‘normal’ pranks to help throw off suspicion.  Then they had made sure to gather all their supplies from vendors that were far away from each other, salvaged from the trash, or that they improvised themselves.  Then Hikaru had scoured his rather extensive- at least comparatively- selection of notes and books to get an idea of any ninja techniques that could help them.  Hikaru was using these opportunities to teach the things that were on the worksheets to his two friends, and since it was for something ‘fun’- or at least something that could see, touch, taste, or smell- they were not only paying rapt attention, but learning as well.

Hikaru counted that as both a win and training in subterfuge, so everyone was happy.

Their current prank, however, was by far their most ambitious- they were going to hit seven merchants all at once. 

Well, it would seem as if the pranks hit all at once because of the traps.  Naruto and Takeru had- after some pointed comments from Hikaru- scoured some of the later years’ of the Academy books on traps and evasion.  Takeru and Hikaru were thinking more along the lines of a color changing charm tied to a time-lapse trigger, but Takeru and Naruto had located and were able to replicate an extremely crude- but effective- pressure trigger seal.

It was in the graduating year of the Academy’s traps and survival guide, a simple thing that activated once the seal took on so much stress and then released the trap’s payload.

Incidentally, Takeru and Naruto were banned from practicing their traps in their apartment after that.  Naruto’s apartment, too, because Hikaru was a bit of a neat freak and did most of the household chores for both apartments.

The biggest stumbling block- and that which kept them from going after anyone but civilians, usually the ones who were unreasonably mean to Naruto- was that Hikaru had remembered that magic, when cast, had left a sort of residue behind.  Tom’s followers had been able to use such things to backtrack and find out who cast what spell, if they arrived soon enough after a spell was cast.  Hikaru was not sure if the shinobi had something along the lines of a ‘Point-Me’ charm, so until he could get a better information and greater understanding, they were staying _far away_ from non-civilian targets.

No matter how much Naruto wanted to prove his awesomeness by hanging catnip all over the Inuzuka Clan grounds.

Even if it would be hilarious.

That was another thing that Hikaru and Takeru had pounded into Naruto’s head.  Pranks were meant to be funny, no more than a little embarrassing, and easily cleaned up.  It had taken them a lot of fumbling around for the right words, but they had eventually managed to explain that pranks like that- as opposed to ones that were severely embarrassing or destroyed property- would not only make the pranks funnier, overall, it would also keep them out of serious trouble.  Naruto had been rather upset once he had realized just how much trouble he had probably caused for his jiji, but the other two boys had calmed him down and pointed out that he really had not done anything too major yet, so he had not really hurt anything other than some peoples’ pride.

So, yes, pranking was their new pastime.  Also why they were dressed in darker clothes- Naruto had refused to give up orange, so Hikaru had gotten him some darker orange sleeveless shirts that he could wear under his navy blue ‘special pranking outfit’ that Hikaru had put together for all of them.  Takeru wasn’t much better- he had a really deep red sleeveless shirt that he favored, and Hikaru himself was a bit of a hypocrite and liked white.

So, compromises were made in the name of getting away with mischief.

“You say something cool after you’ve pranked and gotten away cleanly, shrimp.” 

Hikaru slapped a hand over Naruto’s mouth before the blonde could reply- most likely loudly- and get them caught.  “Alright, we will split up and hit Targets one through three and then meet up in the eastern shopping district for targets six and seven, and then grab targets four and five on our way home.  Agreed?”  Hikaru eased his hand away from Naruto’s mouth.

“Agreed.”  “Got it, believe it!”  Came the two quiet responses.

“Good, let’s move out!”

Quickly, and as quietly as possible, the three boys slithered off into the darkness.

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Sarutobi Hiruzen acknowledged, to himself during the softest part of the night when the loss of his beloved Biwako turned from the constant tingling of a missing limb to a sharp, ardent _ache_ that made his breath stutter and his hands shake, that he was an old man whose time had passed. 

He knew that he was too old, too weary to carry on as Hokage long before they had discovered Orochimaru’s treachery and his hesitation had allowed his formerly prized pupil escape justice.  By then he had already slipped off into retirement once, handing over the weight of the village to a bright blonde man whose love for a fiery-haired Uzumaki was eclipsed- or perhaps, empowered- by his love of the village and all Konoha embodied. 

Minato had seen war, had seen depravity, and had walked onto battlefields and transitioned into a golden tide of death to those who posed a threat to his village.  However, unlike Danzō and Orochimaru, (as much as it hurt him to admit such things- even only to himself- because admitting such things only highlighted that he was a failure as a friend; as a mentor and sometimes he wondered if everything would not have been _better_ had Tobirama-sensei allowed Hiruzen to sacrifice himself instead of staying behind and making the young Sarutobi the Sandaime Hokage), Minato had had a strength of character, a resolve to find a better way that Hiruzen had not seen since Hashirama-sensei.

(Before the First Great Ninja War broke out, before Hashirama had realized that his dream of living in a world that was peaceful and better was all but crumbling beneath him.  It had broken him, that War, and Hiruzen had always suspected that that was why Hashirama’s health had declined so suddenly, leaving them bereft of his warm cheer and guiding wisdom shortly thereafter.)

Hiruzen had held so much hope, so _many_ dreams, after he had stepped back and chosen Minato as his successor.  He had envisioned Minato leading Konoha to greatness, Orochimaru as his counter-balance as Danzō was Hiruzen’s, but the future they shaped being better, sharper, and far more enduring than anything Danzō or Hiruzen had accomplished.

Then, in a single night, all of those dreams had turned to ash and abruptly the weight of the village had shifted back to Hiruzen.  He was heartsick and grieving but serving.  And yet in those few, brief days after the Kyūbi’s rampage- with little Naruto orphaned, his wife dead, and the village in shambles- Hiruzen had realized just how wretchedly _alone_ he was.  The civilians were in an uproar, the shinobi force dangerously reduced, Naruto’s status as the Kyūbi jinchuuriki leaked to the masses, and a million other little things that he had been unprepared for- _because Minato had been running the village, and only had come to Hiruzen for advice_ \- and yet there was no support for him, not from where he expected it to be, where it had supposedly always been. 

Things had cascaded after that, eventually culminating into the events that led to the discovery of Orochimaru’s treachery and Hiruzen’s failure to deal with him, and it was then that Hiruzen had realized that his oldest friends had become adversaries. 

Poisonous snakes gathering around his den, seeking to destroy what they were sworn to protect because they had lost heart, and with it their Will of Fire.  Yet he was trapped between his duty and his mandate, necessity and resources.  So he had removed the protection detail on young Naruto- because he suspected Danzō had infiltrated it, and he did not have the time nor the resources to comb through the ANBU for the Nē operatives, nor did he know if they were loyal to Konoha and misguided, or loyal only to the man he had thought to be one of his oldest friends and allies- and had relegated the young boy’s protection to the network of retired ANBU operatives in secret. 

(Telling Hatake Kakashi that he could no longer watch over his sensei’s child was perhaps one of the most difficult things he had ever done.  The Hokage can never show weakness, not to those who place their faith in him and kill at his word.  But Hiruzen had hinted at the existence of traitors and the threat they posed to Naruto and only that had cause Kakashi to subside and fall back in line. 

Hiruzen knew, however, that the teen would continue to look in on Naruto whenever he had the time. 

It _scalded_ and _chafed_ and _burned_ at him to see Kakashi nearly killing himself by taking so many nonstop high-ranked, nearly suicidal missions to try and fill the yawning chasm that Minato and Kushina’s deaths had left in their wake.  _Hated_ that he _knew_ that Naruto would be _so much healthier_ for the teen, so much _brighter_ and _lighter_ and _better_ \- but the circumstances they faced were forcing Hiruzen to use Kakashi’s self-destructive spiral for the good of the village.

It made him _hate_ himself all the more and he prayed, fervently and frequently, for a miracle.)

With the retired operatives Hiruzen _knew_ their loyalty- or at least he prayed he did, because these men and women had served him and had protected Konoha with their blood, sweat, and tears and were old enough to remember the Shodaime and Nidaime- and he could focus on the conflicts that were threatening to escalate into full-out war and trying to _get his house in order_.

It was working, or it seemed to be working, as Kumogakure had agreed to cease-fire, the treaty signed and the Kumo delegation tucked away for the evening.  Soon he would be able to begin to make his moves against Danzō- as much as it burned at his sense of loyalty to do so- and neutralize Koharu and Homura’s encroachment on the Hokage’s authority.  Eventually allowing him to relegate them to retirement- where _he_ belonged- or at least a different council that would keep them happily occupied and out of his hair, and allowing for the appointment of a new Hokage Advisory and Ambassador Council.

The lightest whisper of sound was his only warning before one of the members of the ANBU- a member of Alpha Platoon, and therefore an animal-masked operative- was crouching before him.

“Report.”  He barked sharply.

“Hokage-sama.”  The masked operative said, staying in his kneeling position but looking up at the Hokage.  “We have a major situation.  The Commander is requesting your presence.”

Something cold coiled through his chest and settled uncomfortably in his stomach, but neither his body language nor his face betrayed his anxiety.  “Lead the way.”  He ordered, signaling for his protection detail to follow.

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	4. The Bow of the Goddess

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The plan had gone off without a hitch.  They had all met up without getting caught and then had gotten those last two targets on their trek back towards the apartment.

Because, really, the two apartments were basically one common territory shared amongst the three of them.

It had been just as they were slipping passed the grocer that was nice to all three of them- and the one they vowed would never, ever be pranked- that Hikaru, (who was still only three for all of his mental maturity, and was therefore being carried by Takeru because he was _exhausted_ ), had abruptly whispered for them to stop.

“What’s going on, Hikaru?”  Takeru asked his friend, who was sort of choking him because he was carrying the other boy piggy-back style and Hikaru’s arms had tightened worryingly around his neck.

“We need to head right, right now!  _Run_!  Don’t worry about getting caught!  We have to _hurry_!”  Hikaru whispered urgently by way of response, and without pause both Takeru and Naruto started running.

“I was checking to see if anybody was around with my ability.”  Hikaru explained as they ran headlong into the night.  “And since these are mostly day-stalls that no one lives over, I was able to expand my range.  The Cloud Ambassador is trying to kidnap a Hyūga kid and there aren’t any patrols anywhere near us!”

It was right about then, just as they reached the east-side shopping district’s park, that they spotted the outline of a figure with a bag over his shoulder.  Knowing that the man was a jōunin and way out of their league, Hikaru tried to think of a plan that could possibly give them an advantage.

Of course, it was about that time that Naruto’s tendency to act before he thought kicked in.  “Hey, jackass!”  The blonde growled, pulling down the cloth covering his bright hair and face and skidding to a stop in front of the man.  “We’re not going to let you get away with this!”

The man’s eyes flashed dangerously and Hikaru felt a sense of dread sweep through him from his vantage point just over Takeru’s shoulder, as the man began to turn.  The boy’s heartbeat rang strangely loudly in his ears as time itself seemed to slow down to a crawl.  Hikaru watched the man finish turning and saw his muscles ripple under the dark fabric that was covering him.  The white-haired boy _knew_ that there was no one else nearby, as this was the mid-village divide that basically served as a buffer zone between the shinobi clan compounds and the higher-end, middle-class civilian residential districts- part of the reason they were in the area- and that even if they screamed help, it would come far too late.  The dense, foreboding sense of dread intensified as Hikaru watched the man shift the sack he was carrying and begin to move and he knew- like he knew his name, and the fact that Takeru was his best friend, and the fact that Naruto was somewhat dense sometimes, but it was mostly part of the defense mechanism that he’d used to insulate himself from all the hate he endured and the blonde was fiercely loyal and unerringly bright- that his friend was about to die.

Hikaru never did remember moving, all he knew was that between one moment and the next he had somehow crossed the distance between them and instead of Naruto’s throat being cut, a sharp knife- _a kunai_ , his mind dazedly reminded him- had been thrust through his back, the point sticking out of the front side of his chest and digging into Naruto’s shoulder.

_Heh.  I guess some things never change._

“Hikaru.”  Naruto breathed, blue eyes wide with horror as his friend’s blood dripped onto him.  “ ** _Hikaru_**!”  He screamed, as something dark and dangerous ripped through him, causing the edges of his vision to tinge crimson as the kunai was carelessly withdrawn, causing Naruto rush forward and catch his weakly coughing friend- _and there was blood, so much blood, too much blood and nonononono_ \- as the man readied another strike.

A second later the world went white for a moment as Takeru let out a wordless, wounded howl of rage and sharp ended, wicked looking chains burst forth from the boy and wrapped around the startled man and dragged him to the ground causing him to drop the sack he had been carrying.

Takeru screamed in incoherent grief, the reverberating sounds of unadulterated agony spewing from his parted lips freely while hot, bitter tears cascaded down his face.  So it was understandable that when a silvery-blue, oddly-shaped dome snapped into place around them, neither Takeru nor Naruto noticed it. 

Hikaru had been laying in Naruto’s arms- Takeru standing a short distance away, still screaming- the blond’s horrified tears dripping onto him as his tiny body convulsed when the Hyūga and the other shinobi arrived.

Well, they arrived at the edge of the barrier that had somehow been erected, but they couldn’t get passed it.  The Hyūga members were attacking the barrier and demanding to be let in, but it was the ANBU Black Ops Captain that broke Takeru out of his shock.

“Kid!  _Hey, kid_!  You need to let us in before the little one dies!”  The masked man barked, startling Takeru into silence and gaining his attention briefly before Takeru’s gaze went back to Naruto and the weakly convulsing Hikaru.

“Hikaru!”  Takeru howled, scrambling over to his wounded friend.  His knees hit the ground and he skid slightly as he landed, but Takeru’s gaze was fixed on the white-haired boy in Naruto’s lap as Hikaru’s small body was wracked with shudders and blood seemed to be _pouring_ out of him.  From his lips and his nose and his chest and _ohkamiohkamiohkami_ -

“Kid, he’s losing too much blood!  We need to get the medic in there **now**!”  The masked operative spoke, tone calm, yet commanding, which is probably why Takeru listened to him instead of ignoring him like he was ignoring the Hyūga members on the opposite side of the barrier-thing.

Takeru had no idea what had happened or how, but he knew that the chains and the barrier were _his_ somehow.  He closed his eyes and focused on holding the man- _who hurt his friend_ \- down while also opening a hole for the Black Ops members to enter through.  It took a minute or two of intense concentration, but he managed to make a hole and the masked shinobi quickly jumped through, and it was a good thing they were so fast, because the hole only lasted about fifteen seconds.

“Sorry.”  Takeru panted as he slid aside for the medic.  “I’m not sure how I’m doing this and I didn’t want to risk that-that _jackass_ getting up.”

“It’s fine, kid.  Good job.”  The Captain soothed, reaching out and ruffling Takeru’s hair lightly.  “Hokage-sama will be here in just a moment, just sit tight.”

Takeru nodded weakly, eyes still fixed on his friend.  He did lean a bit closer to Naruto, though, bumping against his shoulder gently in a silent show of solidarity.  Takeru did not blame the boy for Hikaru’s injury despite the blond’s rather rash actions, but he knew that Naruto was likely blaming himself.

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By the time Hiruzen arrived, the ANBU Black Ops had sealed off the area and thinned out the crowd.  Most of the shinobi were sent back to their patrols, and the Hyūga Clan members had been pushed back a little ways from the barrier.  Hiashi had been allowed to stay, of course, but for the most part the area had been tightly locked down.

Hiruzen took all of that information with a single glance, but what his attention was fixed on was the barrier that was surrounding the Black Ops Team under Badger-taicho, and a few others.

“Report.”  He ordered crisply, striding up to the barrier.

“Yes, Hokage-sama!”  Badger-taicho replied instantly.  “My team was alerted to the situation here by a scream.  When we arrived the Kumo Ambassador had been subdued and the barrier was already in place.”  Here Badger paused and pointed to a blond boy who was seated next to- _oh sweet kami have mercy, that was Naruto!-_ and there seemed to be another child, but all Hiruzen could see what white hair, a great deal of blood, and Otter frantically administering medical aid.  “The child was in shock, but managed to make a hole in the barrier that lasted about fifteen seconds, allowing time for my team to get inside.  After we entered, Shark immediately opened the sack that was found on the ground beside the ambassador and found Hyūga Hinata inside, while Otter and Polecat began administering medical aid to the child who was presumably attacked by the Ambassador.”

“I see.”  Hiruzen said, anger rocketing through him at the thought of a Konoha child being nearly kidnapped from their bed inside the walls of _his_ village.  He quickly forced his emotions under control, however, as Hiashi approached him.

“Hokage-sama!”  The distressed clan head called, coming to a stop a respectful distance from the Sandaime and hastily bowing before gesturing to the silvery-blue barrier.  “Can you please have them lower this barrier so I may hold my daughter?”

Hiruzen nodded agreeably and walked around the edge of the barrier until he was standing just behind the children.  “Excuse me, could you please tell me what happened here?”  He asked gently to the two boys- who were staring down at the small form between the two Black Ops operatives worryingly blankly.

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“Jiji!”  Naruto called out, far more subdued than usual as he glanced over at his grandfather-figure.  “Jiji _it’s all my fault_ and-“

Takeru lightly knocked his shoulder against Naruto’s and interrupted him.  “It wasn’t your fault, shrimp.”  And it was a testament to just how upset Naruto was when he did not even react to the remark.  Takeru reluctantly rose to his feet, tugging Naruto with him since the Black Ops operatives had laid Hikaru out on the ground, and walked towards the Hokage.  “I didn’t realize that you were the jiji that Naruto always goes on about, Hokage-sama.”

The Hokage smiled at him then and Takeru felt something inside him ease.  (The Hokage had white hair, liver spots, and wrinkles, but this man was a far cry from Albus Dumbledore.  There was a steel to this man that the venerable old philosopher had lacked.)  “Yes, well, I knew his parents quite well.”  The Hokage replied genially, tone patient and even despite obviously wanting answers.  “An explanation, if you would?”

Takeru blushed lightly and nodded.  “We were- well-“  He coughed lightly, and then remembered how much trouble they were in and decided to aim for misdirection.  “Setting up some entertainment for tomorrow, and that was why we were out this late.”

“I see.”  The Hokage agreed lightly, though the corner of his lips twitched slightly.

“Hikaru- well, he can kind of sense people?- and we were heading home when he told us that he sensed the Cloud shinobi and Miss Hinata.”  Takeru cringed, misdirection was _not_ something he was good at and he knew he had given away far more information than he meant, but thankfully the Hokage did not call him on it.  “I was carrying Hikaru, so Naruto got here first and-“

“ _I screwed up_!”  Naruto interjected anxiously, dancing around a little as he twisted his hands in the hem of his shirt.  “I didn’t wait for Hikaru to come up with a plan!  I just jumped out in front of the guy and yelled at him!  Next thing I knew Hikaru was in front of me and-and-“  Naruto broke out into fresh tears.  “Hikaru, he saved me, jiji!  He got a kunai through his back _because I was stupid_!  And he would have died if Takeru hadn’t somehow done _this_ -”  Naruto waved his hand around at the barrier and the chains that were still wrapped securely around the Kumo shinobi.

Takeru wrapped an arm around his friend and let Naruto cry into his shoulder, but turned his face towards the Hokage.  “It wasn’t Naruto’s fault.”  Takeru asserted firmly.  “Hikaru couldn’t sense anyone else nearby to get help from and this place is pretty remote.  There was nothing-“  Takeru’s breath hitched as the medic behind them called out to the Captain with a string of words that Takeru could not understand, yet did nothing to mask the urgency in her tone; but he blinked his eyes rapidly a few time, grit his teeth, and continued.  “- _nothing_ that Naruto could have done.  The next thing I remember was wanting to make sure that the Kumo guy couldn’t hurt Hikaru or Naruto again _more than anything_ , and then there were these strange chains and this barrier.  I don’t know…”  Takeru trailed off helplessly.  “I don’t know how to fix it.”  He finished miserably.

“It’s alright, you all were very brave to rush to the aid of a fellow Konoha citizen.  The lack of nearby shinobi who should have been there for you to get help from, is _my_ fault.”    The Hokage’s gaze was a grave, weighty thing and it made any words that wanted to escape the two boys dry up and subside.  Both boys nodded, though Naruto’s head was still all but glued to Takeru’s shoulder and he was sniffling.

The Hokage held their gaze for a moment longer before he glanced at Badger-taicho.  “Hokage-sama.”  The man said once acknowledged.  “We need to get the child- Hikaru?- to the hospital.  Otter is doing all she can, but she needs assistance from another medic and better facilities.”

“Takeru-kun, correct?”  The Hokage asked, turning back to the two boys.

“Yes, sir.  Suzaki Takeru.”

“Hm.  Are you feeling tired at all, Takeru-kun?”

Takeru blinked a few times and then very nearly staggered when he realized that, _yes_ , he was extremely tired.  It was as if his energy had been encased inside a bucket, and now it was rapidly emptying through a hole in the bottom.  He was not quite entirely drained yet, but he would not be able to hold up much longer.  “Yes, Hokage-sama.”

The Hokage’s eyebrows raised a fraction, having caught part of Takeru’s mumbled words, though he doubted the child had realized that he had spoken aloud.  “You can visualize your chakra levels?”

“Uhm.  Yes?”  Takeru replied, slightly puzzled as he shared a quick glance with Naruto.  “It was how Hikaru explained things to us so we could do the stupid leaf exercise.”  Takeru flushed and gave the Hokage a wide-eyed stare.  “Sorry!”  He yelped.

“It’s fine, Takeru-kun, just a little surprising.”  The Hokage replied, deeply amused by the boy’s slight flailing.  “What I want you to do is imagine cutting off the flow of energy that is going to the barrier.  Yo-“  The Hokage broke off his explanation as the barrier wavered and then collapsed, Takeru falling to his knees shortly thereafter.  Naruto, of course, had fallen with him.

“Ah, and you even managed to keep your chains after snapping your connection to them.  Very impressive, Takeru-kun.” 

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After allowing Hiashi to take little Hinata home, the Hokage had swiftly dispatched teams to see the other members of the Kumo delegation out- along with a sternly worded missive for the Raikage- while sending the Kumo Ambassador to Torture and Interrogation.   He had made it perfectly clear that no one other than himself, Ibiki, or Yamanaka Inoichi were to be near the man until they received a reply from Kumo.

Badger’s team was currently watching over the boys who had stopped the Incident, as the youngest one was still in surgery at the moment.  The moment he got out of surgery, however, the boys would be taken to the ANBU wing of the hospital and kept under guard.  If little Hikaru had not been in such a dire condition, Hiruzen would have had him treated at the ANBU Medical Facility in the ANBU Black Ops Underground Headquarters, but the medics had deemed the injuries too dire to sustain the trip, so they had needed to take the child to the main hospital. 

Hiruzen had known that Naruto had made new friends- he did, after all, arrange for them to be able to use most of their buildings’ rooftop for a garden- but he really had not had the time to do more than order a background check on them.  So while he knew that they were both orphans who had recently moved out of the orphanage that was closest to Hokage Tower- one having been brought in by the request of his dying mother who had been fatally wounded by bandits, and the other had been left on the doorstep as the result of a Relations Incident- he had had no idea about their potential abilities or techniques.

Now, looking at the written report that Badger had written up for him, he was regretting that.  The Adamantine Sealing Chains were a trademark of the Uzumaki Clan- Naruto’s mother’s clan.  The Chains were actually fairly common among the Uzumaki, common enough to be viewed as a _kekkei genkai_ , but how strongly they manifested varied greatly.  To be able to both manifest the Adamantine Sealing Chains _and_ create an Adamantine Sealing Barrier?  Young Takeru had to have had at least one Uzumaki parent, and fairly close to the main line.  However, the report filed by the shinobi who had found him said his mother had been a hazel-eyed blonde _woman_.  And there were only so many male members born to the Uzumaki Main House- they had seemed to have a predisposition for girls most of the time. 

Hiruzen was interrupted from his musings by a knock on his office door.  “Enter.”  He called, mentally bracing for the argument to come.  “Hello, Danzō, what do you need?”

Shimura Danzō was a smidge taller than Hiruzen.  He had wildly spiky black hair that was fairly close-cropped on the sides and slightly longer on top, dark nearly black eyes, and possessed a deep ‘x’ shaped scar on his chin.  He walked with a cane in his left hand, and his right arm was secured closely to his side, being entirely covered by the half-black, nearly floor length robe he wore over his white long-sleeved shirt, which was secured with a purple sash.

Honestly, Hiruzen had not seen him change his style since his arm and eye were severely injured during the early days of the Second Great Shinobi War. 

“I distinctly recall advising you against this treaty nonsense, Hiruzen.”  The man spoke severely, coming to a stop just short of the Hokage’s desk and resting lightly against his cane.

“I recall the same conversations, Danzō.”  Hiruzen replied, being extra careful to keep his irritation out of his voice and body language.  “However, we have no proof, at this time, that the man was acting on orders from the Raikage or if this was a personally motivated crime.”

“Surely you’ve not fallen that far into senility, Hiruzen.”  Danzō sneered, his lips twisting with distaste.  “this was nothing more than a ploy-“

Hiruzen slammed his hands down on to his desk and rose smoothly from his chair.  His dark eyes flashed with anger even as he straightened up this full height and allowed his tightly-leashed chakra presence to fill the room.  “I might be old, Advisor Shimura.”  He said in a low, unyielding tone of voice, the words spoken softly and evenly, yet all the more dangerous for it.  “And I stand by my decision.  Kumo is just as tired of constant clashes as we are, and with the unrest that is sweeping Kiri, and the discontent brewing within Tsuchi no Kuni we need this cessation of hostilities.  That is my decision, as Hokage, and you _will not undermine it_.  Kumo will receive their missive and reply with a meeting date, and I will decide on our next course of action when we meet their delegation.  Do I make myself clear?”

Something dark and treacherous skittered through Danzō’s visible eye, but he nodded stiffly.  “Of course, Hokage-sama.”  Then the man turned and exited the office without waiting to be dismissed; a blatant, petty dismissal but a clear indication of exactly how Danzō felt about the matter.

Hiruzen sank down into his chair, weary and exhausted, and allowed himself a single moment of respite.

_Breathe in through the nose._

_Hold for three seconds._

_Exhale slowly through the mouth._

A sad, longing smile tugged at his mouth and his eyes misted ever-so slightly as the _ache_ he felt pulsated excruciatingly somewhere behind his ribs.  He could very nearly _hear_ Biwako’s voice; feel her hands- weathered and aged but as gentle and as full of tender, steadfast affection as ever- on his shoulders as she provided him counsel. 

_One thing at a time, you overgrown monkey_.  Biwako’s profoundly missed alto-pitched voice threaded lightly through his mind.  _Look at the bigger picture and follow your heart where your head fails you.  You are loyal, koi, and that is one of the things that I have always adored about you, but not everyone deserves your loyalty.  Your kindness.  It does not mean that you should shut yourself off from the world, only that you should be wary about who is providing you council.  You are the Fire’s Shadow, anata, but the light shines brightest in the dark.  Let the Will of Fire guide you, Hiruzen.  And for kami’s sake, stop frowning all the time!  You’ll end up looking like Enma at this rate, you old geezer!_

The chuckle that slipped out spoke of deeply seated, unaccountable grief even as a gentle smile rested on the Hokage’s weathered face.  _She was always my strength_.  Hiruzen thought desolately as he forced his shoulders back and his eyes sharpened with resolve.  _I think I understand now, why Hashirama-sensei went before Mito-sama.  This burden is far too heavy to bear without her_.

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	5. My Soul, Corrupted By Vengeance

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Hikaru came to in fits and starts.  It felt as if he were swimming through a vat of molasses and was being pressed downwards by an outside force.  Eventually, though, he managed to work his eyes open and get a look at his surroundings.  It took him a few minutes, wherein he blinked owlishly and tried to shake off the fog that seemed to be stuffed inside his head, to realize that he was in the hospital.

The room did not have a window, but the lighting was thankfully soft and Hikaru could make out Takeru and Naruto’s respective heads of hair poking out from the sheets on the bed to his left through the corner of his eyes.

_I think this is the first time I’ve visited the hospital this time around_.  He thought sluggishly, mentally wincing when he remembered the situation that had landed him here.

It was right about that moment that the pain he was in registered, and his breath stuttered, setting off one of the machines that he was hooked up to. 

He fell back to sleep before the nurse arrived.

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The next time Hikaru floated back to consciousness, his head no longer felt like it was stuffed full of cotton.  Wrapped up in cotton, perhaps, and his mouth was so dry he wondered if there had been a drought, but much better than he had felt previously.

“Hikaru!”  Naruto called excitedly, the sunshine-blonde being the first to notice Hikaru’s new state of alertness.  The two boys had been seated on the other bed, coloring, from the looks of things, but they hastily tossed aside their projects and scrambled over to his beside.  He was fairly certain that they would have crawled in with him, had there not been so many wires and tubes attached to him.  Though he must have caught Hikaru’s wince, because his next words were much softer.  “How do you feel?”  Wide ocean-blue eyes stared at Hikaru mournfully, a mix of relief and trepidation and Hikaru could practically _feel_ Naruto’s self-imposed guilt.

Hikaru’s eyes cut to Takeru and the other boy smiled, but rolled his eyes and nudged Naruto playfully.  “The idiot blames himself.”  Takeru tattled blithely.

“It was my fault!”  Naruto babbled anxiously, twisting his shirt hem nervously and looking anywhere but Hikaru as he went all teary-eyed.  “You got hurt, and it’s _all my fault_ , and I’m _so stupid_ and you probably are _really angry_ because-because _you almost died_ and-“ Naruto’s babbling was cut off when Hikaru poked him none-too-gently in the tummy.

“Baka.”  He mouthed clearly, not having the slighted inclination to try to speak just yet.  He rolled his eyes quite obviously for good measure.

Naruto’s lips trembled slightly as he bowed his head- his shaggy blonde hair shading his face- his voice coming out quite meek and vulnerable when he spoke next.  “So you don’t hate me?”  He whispered quietly, the noise barely eclipsing the noises of all the machinery Hikaru was hooked up to.  “You still want to be my friend?”

Hikaru poked him in the tummy again.  _Much harder_ this time.  The sunshine-blond yelped rather beautifully.

Naruto’s head snapped up and his whole countenance brightened with relief and happiness.  The smile he gifted Hikaru was a soft one, not quite as wide or as effusive as his normal ones, but somehow it was all the brighter for it.  Some of the shadows that had always churned behind Naruto’s eyes lessened, as the tension that had been riding in his shoulders _snapped_ and he went nearly boneless in relief.  “I’m glad.”  He said softly, his smile turning into more of a grin as Takeru gently bumped their shoulders together.  “I promise.”  Naruto swore steadily, the words ringing with all the conviction he could manage.  “I promise that I’ll get stronger.  Better.  So next time I can help.  I won’t let my friends get hurt because of me.  _Never again_.”

Hikaru frowned and Takeru threw an arm over Naruto’s shoulder.   “Idiot!”  He said with a grin.  “We’re all in this together.  Like a team or a squad.”

Hikaru nodded emphatically in agreement.

“Yeah.”  Naruto said after a moment, his grin pulling a bit wider as he threw a fist in the air.  “Together, believe it!”

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“I’m glad you are doing better, Hikaru-kun.”  The Hokage said cheerfully as he smiled genially down at the three boys a few days later, in the early afternoon.  By the clock, anyway. Hikaru had also found out that he had been asleep for nearly a week.

Hikaru had been disconnected from a most of the machines and was now hosting Naruto and Takeru on his tiny bed. The young white-haired boy, who felt as if he had slurped down an _entire ocean’s_ worth of water- between what he had actually sipped and the ice chips he had munched on- smiled somewhat shyly up at the Hokage.  “Thank you, Hokage-sama.”

“Not at all, young man.”  The Hokage told him seriously, pulling up a chair to Hikaru’s bedside and giving them each a brief hair-ruffle before sitting back and leveling a rather solemn gaze on the three.  “Now, as I am to understand from the reports, you three were out setting up a rather ingenious set of pranks the other night, yes?”

The boys flushed a bit, but nodded.

The Hokage chuckled warmly.  “I have to say, I was impressed.  Not only were they rather elaborate traps, the pranks were tasteful and caused no lasting damage to the properties.  Your execution of them was well thought-out as well.  You should be proud of yourselves.”

Naruto beamed and bounced a bit at the praise, and despite their mental maturity both Takeru and Hikaru were filled with a rush of satisfaction as well.  For all that they were mentally advanced- though the longer they lived in this life the more comfortable it became, and the more they disassociated from the emotional attachments in their memories, choosing to use the advantage the memories and experiences gave them without overthinking their situation- very rarely had they received praise from an authority figure for actually doing a good job on something that had not been a life-or-death matter.  The fact that they were being praised for their _skills_ , even though so many other things had happened that night it was- well, _awesome_.

“Between you and I.”  The Hokage told them conspiratorially, sitting forward a bit and acting as if he were relaying a secret.  “It keeps the public on their toes.  Keep up the good work.”

“Believe it, jiji!”  Naruto burst out excitedly, only to flail a bit when he nearly fell off the bed.  “Whoa!” 

The Hokage chuckled a bit longer and then grew serious.  “What I am about to tell you is information you need to keep to yourselves.”  He told them sternly.  “I originally intended to tell Naruto some of this when he was older as it could potentially put him in danger, but recent circumstances have changed the status quo.”

Naruto’s face scrunched up a little and he flicked a quick glance at Hikaru.

“It’s a short, somewhat fancier was of saying ‘the existing state of affairs’ or ‘the status of the current situation’.”  The white-haired boy informed him easily and without prompting. 

“Oh.  I get it now.  Thanks Hikaru!”

“Yes, an excellent explanation, Hikaru-kun.”  The Hokage nodded towards the boy briefly, but continued.  “As I was saying, the status quo has changed.  The other night a shinobi from Kumogakure- the Hidden Cloud Village- tried to abduct the heiress to the Hyūga Clan, young Hinata-chan.  You boys prevented him from doing so.”  The Hokage paused and gave each of them a piecing stare.  “I would have much rather had an actual shinobi handle the situation.”  The Hokage held up a hand to forestall protests.  “However, Takeru-kun told me that there were no shinobi nearby- which was true- and the fact that you three still went forward to save a fellow Konoha citizen showed a great deal of bravery.  I’m proud of the courage you showed, and the hole in the patrol routes has been fixed.”  Something deeply satisfied flashed through the Hokage’s eyes, but the boys missed it.

“So, you’re not going to yell at us?”  Naruto ventured tentatively.

The Hokage shook his head.  “No.  But I am going to tell you some things and I, in return, would like for you to be honest with me.”

Hikaru and Takeru nodded a bit hesitantly, but they agreed.

“Good.”  The Hokage said, resettling in his chair a bit and pulling out a small book from his robes.  He flicked through the pages before finding one and turning the book’s cover towards them.  “This is what is called a Bingo Book.  Every village has an internal one, but there is also an international one that is printed in Kusagakure every six months.  The Bingo Book is where shinobi who had rose to fame- or notoriety, as it were- or Missing-Nin are listed. 

The international one lists mostly Missing-Nin, while the internal books list high-profile shinobi from other village that our shinobi are likely to come up against.  The Book has a picture of the shinobi- or a drawing if there are no pictures available- the price on their heads, a list of their known techniques, and their village of origin.  With me so far?”

Naruto and Takeru flicked a glance at Hikaru.  “The winners write history.”  He muttered, before explaining.  “The International Books are for dangerous rouge or Missing-Nin, basically traitors or deserters.  It’s like an international most wanted list.  The other Books are basically about extremely skilled shinobi from other villages.  They might be heroes to us, but they are potential threats to everyone else and some villages probably would pay to see them taken out, so that they could no longer serve Konoha and would make us less of a threat.”

“Wow.  I totally want to be in there some- _ow_!  That _hurt_ Takeru!”

“You’ll live, shrimp.”

Ignoring the byplay between the other two, the Hokage sent a proud smile in Hikaru’s direction and continued after he flipped the book around so they could see the page he had marked.  “This.”  The Hokage said with a trace of wistfulness in his tone.  “Was Uzumaki Kushina, also known as the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero.”  The Hokage aimed a gentle smile in Naruto’s direction.  “She was a highly skilled kunoichi.  She excelled in kenjutsu, fūinjutsu- the Uzumaki Clan’s specialty- and had mastered Wind and Water Elemental Manipulation.”

Naruto had one hand fisted in Hikaru’s hospital gown, while the other was fisted tightly in the cloth of Takeru’s pants.  His breath seemed strangely loud and the room had become uncomfortably warm.  Jiji had said ‘was’, which meant that the pretty lady in the picture was dead.  But she had the same name as him- had a Clan- and that meant, could mean-

“Are you still listening, Naruto?”  The blonde nodded somewhat jerkily, but seemed to still be paying attention, so the Hokage continued.  “She had a short temper, but a kind heart.  Her favorite ramen was Salt Ramen, she loved to cook, and she was one of the bravest women I had ever met.” 

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Hiruzen paused, looking at the three boys before him.  They were so young, so innocent.  He had still been undecided when he had walked, about if he was going to tell Naruto of his burden or not, but after seeing how little Hikaru so swiftly took in the information and knowing what there was to lose-

It was a risk.  They were just _children_.  But-

(Amazing, isn’t it?  How ripples spread so quickly?)

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“This is a rather long story, but I will try to keep to only the important parts, please listen closely and don’t interrupt until the end, alright?”  After getting three nods, the Hokage continued.  “Two major Clans came together to found Konoha:  The Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan.  The Senju Clan were distantly related to the Uzumaki Clan of Uzu no Kuni, and the two Clans often intermarried.  There has long been a history of friendship between the two, and the Uzumaki Clan founded Uzushiogakure not long after the Senju and Uchiha founded Konoha.  The red spiral on the Konoha uniforms is actually the Uzumaki clan symbol, and we wear it in red because one of the distinctive traits of an Uzumaki was they usually had red hair.

“About five years after Konoha was founded, the leader of the Uchiha Clan and the Shōdaime had a falling out.  Eventually the Uchiha Clan picked a new leader and the Shōdaime and Uchiha Madara clashed at what is now known as the Valley of the End.  The clash was so destructive that it reshaped the very land they stood upon, and the Valley is not the border between Hi no Kuni and Ta no Kuni.  The rogue former Uchiha Clan Head had somehow put the mighty Kyūbi no Kitsune under his power and was using the gigantic chakra demon against the Shōdaime.

“It was during this battle that the Shōdaime’s wife, Uzumaki-Senju Mito-sama, came to her husband’s aid.  Using her clan’s powerful fūinjutsu, she sealed the chakra demon inside her own body so that it could not be recaptured and used again Konoha at a later time.

“Since the Hidden Village system was so new and fragile at the time- Konoha was the very first- the Shōdaime went around and captured the other eight chakra demons- usually referred to as the bijū- and gifted them to the other Hidden villages, as the person they are sealed inside- their jinchuuriki- can call upon their chakra in times of need, though they risk losing themselves to the beast within.  Since each village had a roughly equal footing in terms of power once the bijū had been distributed, there was a lasting peace for nearly twenty years- an unprecedented amount of time without open conflict.

“Unfortunately, during the Second Great Shinobi War a powerful force comprised of several villages banded together because they feared Uzushio’s prowess in fūinjutsu and wiped the village out before Konoha could send aid.  Uzushio’s survivors scattered and went into hiding, and it is one of the worst stains on the honor of the village that we were unable to prevent such a travesty.

“Several years before Uzushio’s destruction, however, Kushina-chan moved to Konoha.  Uzumaki were known for their powerful life-force, dense chakra reserves, and their exceptional health that allowed them to live far beyond their peers.  To keep the balance of power and prevent the Kyūbi from reforming in the wilds after her death, a successor was chosen from Mito-sama’s father’s line, and nearly twenty years ago Uzumaki Kushina took up the burden of the Kyūbi in Mito-sama’s place.”

The Hokage paused and gave all three boys a sharp, quelling look.  “A little over seven years ago, this brilliant Kunoichi became pregnant, and since a female jinchuuriki’s seal is weakest when she is giving birth, many safety measures were put into place.  However-”  Hiruzen swallowed thickly and looked into his honorary grandson’s quietly terrified eyes, immeasurably grateful that Naruto’s friends seemed to be closing ranks around Naruto, sheltering him and pulling him closer, as opposed to becoming scared and pushing him away. 

He quietly prayed that they would continue to do so.

“On that night something happened, a masked man attacked Kushina just after she had given birth, and ripped the Kyūbi from her seal.  The bijū suddenly appeared in the middle of the village, wreaking destruction and causing many casualties.  Eventually the Yondaime Hokage managed to seal it away at the cost of his life.”

“In me.”  Naruto whispered in horror, wanting nothing more than to run as far away as possible and never come out again.  “I’m a demon, a _freak_ -“

Hikaru surged upwards, whimpering at the pain it caused the stiches in his chest.  He was too young for the medics to heal everything cleanly, since children his age were still developing they risked doing more harm than good if they did not allow the wound to finish sealing naturally.  “Weren’t you listening.”  The white-haired boy snapped.  “The Kyūbi is sealed _within_ you.  You aren’t the Kyūbi in a human casing, baka!”

“I killed people!”  Naruto screeched in panic, trying to tug his arms away from Hikaru and Takeru’s grips.  “I-“

“Were born an Uzumaki.”  Takeru interjected evenly, calm and steady in the face of Naruto’s panic attack.  “Your great-aunt- I’m guessing- and your mother carried this burden before you.  It’s scary to think about, yeah, but that just means we need to study this fūinjutsu stuff and make sure that you’re strong enough that you won’t need to call on your little _houseguest_.”

Naruto was still panicking, his blood still a strange roaring in his ears and his heartbeat nearly fast enough to break out of his chest, but-

His friends.  They were steady.  Unwavering in the face of this terrible revelation.  Hanging onto him even though he struggled against them, yet they refused to let go, and were resolved to stand with him whether he wanted them to or not.

“Besides.”  Hikaru said, a familiar spark of mischief in his eyes.  “Don’t you want to be Hokage?  What kind of Hokage gives up over a little hiccup like this?  Hokage overcome, they don’t falter-“

“-they push forward, ‘the fire’s shadow illuminates the village’, after all.  I _know_ you did the Will of Fire worksheets with me!  Hikaru made us do them until we could _recite them in our sleep_.”

“Besides, your hero- the Yondaime- he believed in you Naruto.  Yeah, it sucks, but others would buckle under the weight of this thing, but you’re _our friend-_ ”

“-our _slightly crazy_ friend who stood up to a _jōunin_ to keep him from kidnapping a girl you _didn’t even know_.”

“It’s not going to be easy, but nothing worthwhile ever is-”

“- and you’re going to screw up.  You’re going to hesitate and fail sometimes, but that’s why you have crazy-awesome friends like us.”

“You guys.”  Naruto breathed in something between rage and wonderment, his face tearstained and his breath shaky.  “You-“

“You’re still kind of in shock.”  Takeru said, slightly relaxing the grip he had on Naruto’s arm, but not letting go completely.  The boy gave Naruto a quicksilver grin.  “We’ll sneak into one of the training grounds when Hikaru gets out of the hospital and we’ll wreck it.  We’ll let you cry and scream and break things.”

“But then we’ll fix it and we’ll go home.”  Hikaru butted in cheerfully.  “Well, we’ll stop and get some Ichiraku Ramen on the way, and watch crappy action movies all night.  Then in the morning, when your head’s clear, we’ll go back to training.”

“And when it gets to be too much again and you feel like you’re going to go crazy, we’ll do it _all over again_ until the dust settles and you realize that you’re just a shrimpy brat.” 

Takeru punctuated the statement with a hair-ruffle and Naruto wondered if it was possible to drown in gratitude.  To be so overwhelmed by these strange feelings of steadfast loyalty and stalwart support that he would somehow cease to exist.  Because Naruto had been all alone, with only jiji’s occasional visits and his weekly voucher for Ichiraku to look forward to, not all that long ago.  He’d been drifting in a sea of grey _nothingness_ , not even qualifying as background noise most of the time and being the focal point of bewildering hostility the rest of the time. Then he had stormed up to that roof one day- after he’d tried to buy something at one of the street vendors and he’d been completely ignored and humiliated- and he had somehow stumbled upon these two impossibly loyal, smart, kind friends.  And really, Naruto doesn’t know what to feel at the moment, but the knowledge that his friends are _with him_ \- through Clan revelations and finding out that he has a _force of nature_ stored somewhere inside his gut- through all this is pretty-

_Amazing_.

“You guys.”  Naruto hiccupped, though he couldn’t tell you if it was in relief or anger or simply being dazed.  “You guys are the best friends _ever_.”

“Indeed.”  The Hokage interjected, eyes suspiciously moist as he regarded them with a fierce sort of pride.  The elderly man battled down his emotions, however, and pressed forward.  “However.”  And that single word snapped all of their attention back to the Hokage.

“There’s more?”  Naruto asked incredulously.  He _really_ wasn’t sure how many more earth-shattering revelations he could take today.

“The Adamantine Sealing Chains- the chains that young Takeru manifested after little Hikaru was wounded- are actually the reason why I have decided to tell you all this information.  Why the status quo changed.”  There was no need to tell them that if they had reacted overwhelmingly negatively he would have sealed their memories.  He was an optimist, not a fool.  He was exceedingly happy to see that his gamble was looking to pay off.  Oh, they hadn’t gotten the entire story just yet, and they most likely were still in shock, but their kneejerk reactions caused a kernel of hope to take root in his chest.  After all, Mito had always told him that to hold a burden like the Kyūbi; the vessel must first be filled with love.

Naruto might not have a traditional family to fall back on, but it was looking as if he had two unwavering friends, which was very nearly the same thing.  Friends such as Hikaru and Takeru were simply family that one had chosen instead of drawn.

Takeru’s brows knitted together in concentration.  “But why?”

Before the Hokage could respond, Hikaru did.  “ _Kekkei genkai_.”  He interjected flatly, his mouth set in a firm, suspicious line.  “A trait that belongs to a specific family or bloodline.”

The Hokage smiled warmly at Hikaru.  “Correct.”  Here the old man’s eyes twinkled with mischief.  “Can you guess what Clan?”

Hikaru got it first.  “You don’t mean-“  His eyes widening in bemusement.

Both Takeru and Naruto were still confused.

“Indeed.”  The Hokage smiled warmly at the boys.  “I had Otter draw blood samples and compare them.  The Adamantine Sealing Chains- and their evolved form the Adamantine Sealing Barrier- are both _kekkei genkai_ belonging to the _Uzumaki Clan_.  Many different members were able to use the Chains somewhat, but to have the trait manifest as strongly as it did meant that Takeru was somehow related to the Main House.”  The Hokage grinned at the two dumbstruck boys.  “From the best we can deduce, Takeru is actually more closely related to Mito-sama than Kushina-chan was, and Kushina-chan was her great-niece.”

Takeru swallowed heavily and bit his lip, casting a furtive glance at Hikaru who shrugged lightly.  “I remember their names.”  He told the Hokage quietly.  “My parents, that is.  But kaa-chan told me not to tell.”

The Hokage rested a level gaze onto Takeru.  “Clan business is Clan business, and if you do not wish to tell me you are not obligated to.”

Takeru and Hikaru both fell into a deep set of concentration, and both the Hokage and Naruto waited patiently.  (Naruto mostly because he was too exhausted to do more than exist at the moment and the Hokage because he had a feeling these next few minutes could change everything.)

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_Should we tell him?_

_I don’t know.  He’s the Hokage, the military leader of this village, but-_

_But what?_

_I think that instead of coddling us he could help us.  Teach us how to not paint a target on our backs.  He’ll use us, but we already wanted to be shinobi so-_

_-so we were always going to be under his authority._

_Yeah._

_What do we do then?_

Bright green met vivid purple as the child-like urge to please warred with the paranoia of sleeping war veterans within their souls.

_He was honest with Naruto._ Takeru offered to the conflicted Hikaru _.  He gave him all the background information, too, all the while taking a gamble on us and our loyalty_.

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	6. Hath Endured Torment

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“Uzumaki Tenmaru and Uzumaki-Senju Hitomi.”  Takeru said reluctantly after a few minutes of weighted silence. 

The Hokage’s breath caught somewhere between his throat and his lungs.  It took a moment, but a smile spread across his face.  Not one of triumph or one edged with greed, but a soft, nostalgic smile that made the Hokage’s entire being seem lighter.  “Senju Hitomi was Senju Tobirama’s - the Nidaime Hokage- only child.  She was born the year after Konoha was founded and was married to Mito-sama’s youngest brother as part of a treaty binding-“  here he had to stop and chuckle because the boys looked comically _horrified_.  “Mito-sama was married to Tobirama-sensei’s brother,”  He explained.  “So Hitomi-san was not related to Mito-sama by blood.  However, since Tenmaru-san was Mito-sama’s _brother_ instead of her _nephew_ , as was the case with Kushina-chan, that makes Takeru-kun Mito-sama’s nephew, and Naruto-kun Mito-sama’s great-great-nephew.  Though Takeru-kun is also the grandson of the Nidaime Hokage, as well as the great-nephew of the Shodaime Hokage.”

“That is still uncomfortably closely related.”  Hikaru interjected rather wryly.

“Welcome to Clan politics.”  The Hokage parried humorously.  “I’ve always been thankful that the Sarutobi Clan don’t have a specific _kekkei genkai_ and is largely spared from the usual keep-the-bloodline-pure nonsense.” 

“So, wait.  You told me about my mom and the giant furball because Takeru is my cousin?”  Naruto blinked a few times and looked to Hikaru.  “He is my cousin, right?”

“Yep!  Good thing you two can’t reproduce together.” Hikaru chirped cheerfully.

The utterly disgusted, horrified looks on their faces nearly made Hikaru bust his stitches.

Once the Hokage had gotten them calmed down and they had had a bathroom/refreshment break he once again became serious.  “Takeru-kun said that it was Hikaru-kun who identified the shinobi, but also that he knew that the shinobi was committing a crime and that there were no Konoha shinobi nearby.”

Hikaru squirmed a little, but nodded.  “I can- well.”

“If it is Clan related, you do not have to answer, Hikaru-kun.”  The Hokage assured him.

Hikaru grimaced, but reluctantly replied.  “I’ve figured out how to control it now.  And I’ve never used it on a shinobi- that I know of, anyways.”  Hikaru looked up at the Hokage rather fearfully, as the full implications of his talent hit him head-on and he suddenly realized all that could _go wrong_ and _be abused_ and how the last old man he’d trusted-

Naruto’s hand was warm and his eyes were sympathetic.  “Jiji is in charge of the whole village, but he’s also _jiji_.”

Not the most eloquent speech, but Naruto had a rather uncanny knack for ferreting out untrustworthy or unsavory types, and there was a part of Hikaru that wanted an adult to _look up to_ , _to help guide him_.  Not _control_ him or _oppress_ him or _coddle_ him, but to be a _mentor_ , a _father_ -

Hikaru swallowed harshly a few times and took a deep breath, looking down at his small- _so small, so frail, stupidstupidstupid-_ hands that held a white-knuckled grip on his sheet.  Taking courage in the warmth of Naruto and Takeru’s steady support, he spoke quickly, before he could change his mind.  “I can sense other minds near me and form a connection to them.  I can hear their thoughts, and if that are close enough, view their memories.  It used to overwhelm me and that was why I cried all the time, but I can block it out completely now if I want.  I mean, I can still sense that there are people around me, but I can’t hear them unless I want to now.”

The Hokage hummed lightly.  “That is…..both an amazing ability and a terrible burden.” 

The man’s dark eyes were full of compassion when Hikaru finally screwed up the courage to meet them.  “It’s not so bad now that I can keep people out.”  He said with a small, tremulous smile. 

“I would imagine.”  The Hokage murmured.  “And I thank you for your faith in me.”  The Hokage sighed as he looked at the clock, it was well into the evening now and he had things he needed to be attending to.  “I will have to make this brief.”  He told them briskly.  “The worst is over in terms of earth-shattering revelations and personal upheaval, but the difficult part is about to begin.”

“There are people who will come after us, isn’t there?”  Hikaru asked glumly before he perked up briefly.  “Well, not _me_ because all I did was get stabbed, but they will be after the shrimp and the moocher.”  Takeru spluttered in offended outrage and Naruto shot him a look that promised retribution, but Hikaru gloried in them.

“Yes.”  The Hokage agreed.  “And not all the threats will come from outside the village.  Which is why the three of you will be hosted by different Clans until my preparations to ensure your safety are completed.”

“Separately?”  Hikaru asked warily.

“Unfortunately.”  The Hokage sighed heavily and held up a hand for silence.  “There is an incredible amount at stake here and I appreciate how well you’ve taken all this information and _I am very proud of all three of you_ \- you are going to be great men and good shinobi.  However, debt to them or not, if I allow the Hyūga Clan to host _all three of you_ at once-“

“It will tip the balance of power.”  Hikaru muttered, flushing slightly when he realized everyone was looking at him.  “What?  It will!  The Clans are allowed a significant amount of autonomy on internal matters and inter-clan matters- it is part of the Founding Charter- but the Hokage overrules them in village-wide situations that affect the safety of the village as a whole or the village’s state of readiness.”  He quickly explained.  “To give one Clan three orphans- one of them with a known, powerful _kekkei genkai_ \- would give that Clan too much political capital and wound the pride of the other Clans.  Especially as the Hyūga Clan are one of the four noble Clans of the village.”

“Noble clans?” Naruto asked confusedly.

“Yeah.”  Hikaru continued after flicking a quick glance at the Hokage.  “While the Senju clan are one of the most revered clans in Konoha history, the four noble Clans have significant authority in Konoha and have blood ties to daimyos or other imperial lines.”  Seeing Naruto’s utter incomprehension and Takeru’s confusion, Hikaru sighed and elaborated.  “Even though, _within_ the village, their titles don’t necessarily equal more power- as all the Clans are allowed equal representation on the Clan Council- these four clans hold a great deal of influence in Hi no Kuni. 

For example, the Fire Daimyo has employed members of the Hyūga Clan as ambassadors or in other Court positions since long before the village was founded.  To offend one of the noble Clans could cause major trouble for the village from outside sources, even though within the village the Hokage has supreme authority.  It could even catalyze a civil war when-and-or-if you twos’ heritage became public record, if the other noble Clans became too offended.”

“Well spoken, Hikaru-kun.”  The Hokage praised warmly.  “But, in as many words, that is why you must be fostered separately until I can make permanent arrangements for you.  I am hoping to have your living situations resolved within the month, but until then different Clans will play host to each of you.” 

_Because even though Naruto-kun and Takeru-kun are related, between the two of them they are related to every Hokage except myself._   The Hokage thought grimly, trying to rearrange his plans to include the worst possible scenario. _The situation with the Uchiha Clan is tense enough as it is and even though they are under guard there is no guarantee that Danzō- or the Clans- have not managed to gather blood samples from the boys and run their own analyses.  The information on Takeru-kuns’s kekkei genkai has already spread to too much of the village for me to suppress the information entirely, and now people will be looking at Naruto-kun much more closely as well._

“What about Hikaru?”  Naruto asked, worrying his bottom lip as he quickly glanced at his youngest friend anxiously.  “I mean- ah-“

“Nice to see that we’re beating some tact into you, blondie.”  Takeru teased lightly ducking the swipe Naruto aimed at him in retaliation. 

“I am curious, though.”  Hikaru said inquisitively, looking over at the Hokage curiously.  “Since I’m a Relations Incident drop-off, where does that leave me?  I mean, I could see Naruto and Takeru’s connection, but I doubt their caretakers would want to host me as well.”

“We’re not going to stay separated, believe it!”  “I won’t agree if they won’t take you too, old man.”

“Well.”  The Hokage said, raising his voice to be heard over the squabbling.  “You can request a blood test that is ran through the entire shinobi database, but the Records Division is under oath to report the results to the Hokage, who then is duty-bound to inform the relevant parties, and it would give them the affected Clan’s the right to petition the Hokage for guardianship.”  The Hokage grinned.  “Since the letter that was left with you specified that you were a Relations Incident, you are a ward of the Hokage, instead of the village.  This means that I do not have to relinquish custody if I feel that it would be detrimental to your development as a shinobi.”

“Gotta love loopholes.”  Hikaru muttered wryly as a wave of pure exhaustion swept over him, causing him to blink blearily.  “I’d like- _yawn_ \- to know, Hokage-sama.”  He mumbled as his body abruptly shut down and he nodded off.

“I’m surprised he stayed awake this long.  He certainly is a stubborn one.”  The Hokage chuckled as he rearranged the blankets and stood.  “Things will be hectic for a while.”  He told Takeru and Naruto with a smile as he ruffled their hair.  “But you three seem to have a strong bond between you, cherish it.”

“We will, jiji!  Believe it!”  “Always, Hokage-sama.”

“Get some rest, boys.”

_You’ve earned it_.

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The next days passed by rather slowly for the three boys.  They were confined to the room due to safety concerns, and except for the meals their guards brought and when the medics were allowed inside, they were left to entertain themselves.  The room had an attached bathroom and had been provided with several changes of clothes, so they could keep themselves cleaned up, but that was about it as far as amenities were concerned.

Fortunately they had plenty of paper and things to color with, so they could amuse themselves fairly easily, as all three of them had rather active imaginations.

They had officially sketched out plans for seventy five pranks, as a matter of fact, and had rough outlines of another twenty.

It had not all been fun prank-planning, however, as Naruto had had a rather spectacular mini-meltdown about three hours after the Hokage had left them concerning his status as a jinchuuriki.  The other two had patiently managed to talk him through it, though, even if the guards had checked on them a few times due to Naruto accidentally using small bits of the Kyūbi’s chakra while he had been overwhelmingly distraught.

It had taken Hikaru telling Naruto the story of how Harry’s mother had died for him and how the boy had learned how to deal with that- suitably abridged to fit the current circumstances- for the blonde to stop actively hating himself, and blaming his very existence for being the root of his mother’s demise.

Naruto had not fully resolved any of his issues, but he had plenty of support in Hikaru and Takeru, and they were not about to let him drown in a sense of misplaced guilt or unnecessary self-pity.

They had made it through that rough patch, though, and now Naruto seemed to be handling the information in a true Naruto-manner.  That was to say he was bound and determined to be the _absolute best jinchuuriki ever_.

“ _I want to find a way to fix things_.”  He had told them earnestly, blue eyes unwavering and resolute once he had been talked down from his panic and had slept on the information.  “ _Mito-obaa-san and kaa-chan_ -“  There had been a slight hitch in his voice when he had spoken about his newly-discovered mother, but he had pressed forward in spite of it.  “- _they both held the fox before me, but I’m gonna find a way to fix things, so that no one else has to!  Then I’ll become Hokage and change the way the rest of the villages handle their bijū!  I won’t let this jinchuuriki thing continue!  Believe it!”_

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Senju Tsunade swirled the sake around in her cup, seemingly staring down into its depths, but her mind was worlds away from the tiny tea Country bar she had situated herself in for the night.

It had been a week since Sarutobi-sensei’s summons had tracked her down.  Seven days since she had found out that her grand-uncle’s grandson was currently under guard at the ANBU wing of the Konoha hospital, because he, her grandmother’s great-nephew, and another brat had stopped a Kumo shinobi from abducting the Hyūga Clan Heiress.  The stress of the incident having caused the little brat to manifest the Uzumaki Clan _kekkei genkai_ in front of nearly two dozen shinobi, half of the Hyūga Clan, a hostile shinobi, and who knows who else before Sarutobi-sensei had managed to calm the brat down, which meant that the information was unable to be adequately suppressed.

She snorted derisively and took a sip of her drink.  Tsunade had left the village roughly three years before the Kyūbi Attack, taking Shizune with her on a meandering journey through the Elemental Countries. 

One day she had woken up and realized that she had given enough to the damn village, and refused to stay within Konoha’s walls for even a single day longer.  She had served on the staff of the hospital through the Third Great Shinobi War, doing whatever she could to assist the village even though her severe fear of blood prevented her from being a hands-on medic.  Tsunade had given her father, mother, brother, grandfather, grandmother, granduncle, lover- all of those who were dear to her had been lost, their blood spilled so that Konoha might stand another day and she hated them for it.  Hated her family for throwing their lives away, hated the village for taking them away, hated herself for _never being strong enough_ , fast enough, good enough-

Amber eyes narrowed and something between helpless rage and crippling grief warred within her gaze as she fought back the leaden, jagged _ache_ that thoughts of Konoha always set off within her breast.

_And now_.  Tsunade thought contemptuously.  _They want me to come back, to raise a pair of boys and then allow them to go off and die just like everyone else.  This after they refused to allow me access to grandmother’s great-nephew because they did not want his heritage to be made public, and being seen with me would have ‘enabled people to connect the dots between Uzumaki Kushina and Namikaze Minato’.  Stupid fucking Advisory Council._

The blonde closed her eyes and drew in a deep, bracing breath.

_I won’t do it.  It’s a fool’s bet.  A decade or less of having family and another lifetime of loss to bear.  I won’t.  I can’t.  I’m so sorry, Takeru-kun, Naruto-kun._

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Five days after his first visit- and nearly two weeks after their misadventure- the Hokage returned.  This time he was accompanied by two men.  One was a tall man with dark chocolate-colored hair, pale lilac eyes, and was wearing a rather expensive looking white robe that was cinched with a lilac sash.  The other man was not quite as tall, and was nearly drowning in his large high-collared coat, he even had his hood up!  Dark sunglasses were perched on his pale nose, and he wore standard ninja pants with bandages wrapped around his mid-calf to his ninja sandals.

“Good afternoon, boys.  Are you ready to get out of here?”  The Hokage greeted cheerily, gifting each boy with a kindly smile.  “This-“  He said gesturing to the man in the robe.  “-is Hyuga Hizashi-san, and this-“ Here he gestured towards the other man.  “--is Aburame Shibi-san.”

“But, jiji, there’s only _two_ of them.”  Naruto protested in puzzlement.

Takeru grinned and gently poked Naruto in the cheek.  “Awesome manners, shrimp.”  Naruto squawked in embarrassment, but Takeru ignored him and turned to the guests.  “Good morning, Hokage-sama.  Hello and nice to meet you, Hyūga-sama, Aburame-sama.  I’m Suzaki Takeru.”

The two men nodded at him, and the other two boys introduced themselves, Hikaru somehow hoarsely, as he’d only just woken up.  He had gotten his stiches removed only the day before, and he had had a rather rough night.

“Takeru-kun, you will be staying with the Aburame Clan, while you, Naruto-kun, will be staying with the Hyūga Clan.”

Naruto, after he had echoed Takeru and politely thanked both the Hokage and politely greeted the Hyūga man, asked what they all were thinking.  “But what about Hikaru, jiji?”

“Hikaru-kun and I need to have a discussion, but I am sure you all will be seeing each other again soon.  Now I need you two to gather your things…”

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Orochimaru of the Sanin intently scrutinized the data he held in front of him, courtesy of one of his agents who lived within Konoha.  _A Hatake child with the possibility of awakening the Sharingan?  How exciting._   He thought as he leaned back in his throne-like chair and contemplated the information.

The man’s golden eyes roved over the room, absently noting the many trinkets and odds-and-ends that littered his receiving room with something very closely related to utter indifference.  From further down the corridors he could hear muffled screams and the sounds of muted sobs, but that was to be expected as this room was situated rather closely to the Procedure Rooms.

The man himself was clad in a rather nondescript shinobi wear, with a heavy cloak with fluffy red clouds on a black background tossed carelessly over the back of his chair.  His long, pale fingers tapped idly against the report for a few minutes before an idea seemed to come to him, the light purple markings underneath his eyes accentuating the flash of predatory anticipation that flickered through his golden gaze.  His purple, tomoe-shaped earrings swayed lightly when he abruptly shook his head, causing his long, inky-dark mane of hair to spill over the armrest of the chair and nearly touch the floor as he laughed at the _utter simplicity_ of his plan to acquire the Hatake child.

_I know someone who would love nothing more than to get their hands on a child capable of using the Uzumaki Sealing chains- enough so that they would gladly acquire the newest Hatake for me, despite his value._   The former Konoha-shinobi pondered as his fingers greedily ghosted over the name of the boy’s mother.  _With the Hatake inborn battle-genius, coupled with their dense, concentrated chakra and innate sense of chakra control; the Uchiha Clan’s results of their selective breeding- carefully cultivated to ensure that their members possess both the chakra capacity and the mental capabilities to cope with prolonged use of the Sharingan; and lastly, the Yamanaka Clan’s potential to absorb nearly absurd amounts of information with an incredible rate of retention, coupled with their inborn instincts for the most minute changes in body language……_

A slow, pleased small sprawled lazily across the man’s lips as he rose from his chair with a nearly inhuman grace and snatched up his cloak.  _Yes, I do believe I’ll be able to strike a deal that will benefit both of us, dear Danzō._

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	7. To Find the End of the Journey

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Once the Hokage and Hikaru were alone- neither Naruto nor Takeru had particularly wanted to leave their friend behind- the man sat down in the bedside chair and gave the boy a deep look.  “Your blood tests came back in, Hikaru-kun, and they are….complicated.”

“Sir?”  Hikaru asked uncertainly, partially wanting to know who and where he came from more than anything, and partially terrified that it was going to be only bad news that exited the Hokage’s mouth.

The Hokage gave him a calm, reassuring look before continuing.  “Your mother passed away from complications from an injury sustained in the line of duty approximately eight months ago.  Your father is an active-duty Konoha shinobi.”

Hikaru’s brows knitted together in confusion.  “But I thought I was-“

“Relations Incidents can sometimes occur between two Konoha shinobi, Hikaru-kun.”  The Hokage explained gently.  “However, it is the identity of your parents- and your grandparents, which your blood test linked you to since we had to compare your results to all the recorded DNA profiles because we had no starting point to work from- which complicated the issue.”

“Does.”  Hikaru’s tongue felt heavy and his heart felt as if couldn’t decide whether it wanted to drop to his knees or jump out of his mouth.  “Does my father not want me?”  He finished meekly, his voice fragile and weak as he dropped his eyes to his hands, which were fisted tightly in the sheet.

Because all Harry Potter had ever wanted was family that _wanted_ him.  Hearing that his mother had passed was one thing, he had been a tiresome baby what with his constant screaming around people, and maybe she just couldn’t handle him.  The fact that she was dead excused a lot of things, but to have a father who was alive and well-

“I assure you, Hikaru-kun.”  The Hokage said gravely, even as the old man laid a comforting hand on the boy’s white-haired mop of hair and ruffled the pale strands gently.  “That your father had no idea you existed before this morning.”

Hikaru swallowed heavily a few times, and took a few deep, shuddering breaths before he felt brave enough to look up at the Hokage again.  “So, what now?”  He asked quietly.

“Well, now the complicated part comes into play.”  The Hokage told him grimly.  “Apparently your mother’s father was a Yamanaka Clan member and her Clan- the Uchiha- never informed the Yamanaka clan of their relation.”  Hikaru raised an inquisitive eyebrow, but stayed silent, allowing the Hokage to continue uninterrupted.  “This would not be such a complicated issue, except her father was the current Yamanaka Clan head’s older brother.” 

A second pale eyebrow lifted itself to join the first and Hiruzen privately thought it was one of the most adorable things he’d ever seen, but he appreciated the boy’s lack of interruptions.

“Now, Inoichi-san, the current Yamanaka Clan Head, has a daughter who is older than you so, thankfully, the Yamanaka already have an Heir.  However, the Yamanaka are _quite unhappy_ that they never knew about your mother and the Uchiha are _quite unhappy_ that they never knew about _you_ , and in the midst of all of this is your father’s identity.”

“Oh?”  Hikaru asked, feeling a tiny bit apologetic for putting the Hokage in the middle of such a situation.

“Yes.”  The Hokage continued, lips twitching as if he had heard Hikaru’s errant thought.  “Your father is Hatake Kakashi.”

“ _Sharingan no Kakashi is my tou-san_?”  Hikaru exclaimed incredulously.  “He’s one of the most famous jōunin in the village!  He’s in _the Academy history books_!”

“Kakashi is a very successful shinobi and a wonderful asset to the village.”  The Hokage agreed easily.  “However he and the Uchiha Clan have a rather complicated history.  Kakashi-kun received his Sharingan as per the final wish of his Uchiha gēnin teammate, which has never set well with some of the members of the Uchiha Clan, although the Uchiha Elders and the Clan Head chose to honor the Uchiha’s dying wish and allowed Kakashi-kun to keep the eye.”  The Hokage sighed slightly before continuing.  “Unfortunately, Kakashi-kun had already been slated for a vital mission prior to the meeting this morning and had to leave immediately afterwards, though he signed the custody papers immediately after seeing the presented evidence.”  The Hokage gave the boy a slight grin.  “He stole the file photo, too.  The little sneak.”

Hikaru grinned back at the Hokage as the frozen shard of ice in his chest that had been forming since the Hokage entered with only two companions finally began to ease.  His father hadn’t known about him before and he wasn’t here now, but he _wanted Hikaru_.  The Hokage said that he signed the papers without hesitation once he had seen the evidence, so Hikaru had room to hope that his father didn’t just want him as a trophy or bargaining chip, but just because Hikaru was _his_ and that was-

_Everything good, honestly_.

“Since Kakashi-kun did not have the time to deal with the squabbling Clan Heads before he left, as his mission is a time-sensitive matter, he left your arrangements until he returns up to me.  Uchiha Minami’s- Minami was your mother’s name- mother is still living, but she has three children, and lives in the Uchiha District with her Clan.  The Yamanaka Clan are a bit more spread out, and Inoichi-san and his wife have only the one girl, Ino-chan.”  The Hokage explained.  “So what I need to know, Hikaru-kun, is if you would prefer to go stay with your grandmother, who has several other children for you to play with and many others nearby, or your great-uncle, who is from a smaller family and has only one other child.”

“Well.”  Hikaru said slowly, turning the information over slowly in his head.  “I really don’t know any of them so I can’t really give you an opinion, Hokage-sama.  If you’re wondering about my- ah, _ability_ , being around people is not really an issue for me anymore, but I do prefer smaller groups just as a personal preference, sir.”

The Hokage nodded agreeably.  “Very well, then.  Your father is scheduled to be gone for roughly two weeks, and I will have you spend the first week with the Uchiha Clan and the second with Inoichi-san’s family, so that you might get to know them both.”

Hikaru shrugged in agreement.  “Sounds good to me, Hokage-sama.”

“Excellent!”  The Hokage replied as he stood to leave.  “I should be back soon, then.  You might want to begin gathering your things, but don’t overexert yourself, Hikaru-kun.”

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It took Hikaru about thirty seconds alone with her to decide that he did not care for Uchiha Kanna at all.  After another hour of enduring her overbearing, condescending presence, he decided that he was unlikely to ever change his opinion.

_Ever_.

The woman was beautiful, even he could admit that, with pitch black hair and even darker eyes and looked to be fighting-fit, but Hikaru was fairly certain that her heart was as black as her hair.  Hikaru spent many moments over the course of the next few days wondering if she was this world’s equivalent to Harry’s Aunt Petunia or Walburga Black.

He honestly could not decide.

Secretly, Hikaru held out hope that his mother had been a kind, decent person from all the vitriol the hag spewed about Uchiha Minami, so that was sort of relief for the boy.

After the evil hag had come storming into his room and demanded that he go join the pre-Academy age Uchiha children in their training over at Tensen-oji-san’s dojo for the _third_ time, Hikaru had had enough.  Especially as he _distinctly remembered_ that the medics had _specifically stressed_ for him not to anything more vigorous than walking at a normal pace.

Getting up and padding over to the _genkan_ , he quickly slipped on his new shoes- his old ones had been thrown away by the harpy-hag- and exited the house as efficiently as possible. 

The Uchiha District was rather large; it was sort of its own mini-village, really.  They had vendors as well as houses as well as a nearly obscene amount of dojos and several Uchiha-only training fields at the very back of the District.  There were plenty of places for him to take small breaks though, and most of the adults he encountered merely looked at him in neutral curiosity or were really nice.  He figured the other younger Uchiha kids must be in their homes or training.

_So there’s hope that the hag is the exception, not the rule._   Hikaru thought to himself consolingly, swinging his feet idly as he munched on a stick of dango and sipped at some water that a nice obaa-san had given him while he sat on a bench in the shade.  _I wonder where I should go next, I’ve seen the east side of the District already so maybe I sh-_

A sudden wave of exhaustion passed over him, and caused the dango to slip from between his fingers.  _Feels wrong_ his instincts whispered in warning, _not right_.

Hikaru blinked a few times and there was a nearly painful stinging sensation in his eyes before his exhaustion entirely disappeared and the world around him was suddenly in high-definition.

_What the hell?_   He thought dazedly, hopping off the bench and spinning in a tight circle as he tried to see if someone else was nearby.  _It felt like someone hit me with some kind of sleeping charm or something_.  His new super-vision kind of worked against him, however, as the influx of detailed information that his eyes were suddenly taking in seemed to be nearly drowning his poor brain.  Just as he levelled out, and his mind seemed to finally synch up with his eyes, a man with white hair suddenly appeared in front of him and he felt the pinprick of a needle before his world darkened.

He hadn’t even had time to scream.

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Uchiha Fugaku was angry.  Actually that was a lie- he was positively _furious_.

Uchiha Minami had not been widely accepted by her mother’s friends because Uchiha Kanna was a vapid, horrid woman who kept company with equally spiteful, hateful women.  She was the type of woman who believed that the world owed her everything and then more simply because she said so.  Unfortunately there were more than enough people willing to pander to the woman’s whims thanks to her Clan name and her position within the Clan, so her sense of entitlement was constantly swelling.

Fugaku knew his clan had more than a few self-important idiots and it was not something that pleased him, to be entirely honest.  However, he had far too much to do in between trying to keep the Clan together, being the Chief of Police and the Commander of the village’s Internal Security Force- one being the civilian title and the other being the shinobi one- watching out for Danzō’s next move to isolate the Clan further, and his own family to truly have the time or energy to invest in trying try to curb the issue.

Right now, he really wished he had and would be setting Mikoto on their vapid asses as soon as he could speak with his lovely, terrifying wife.

“Convenient, isn’t it?”  Danzō’s voice was so saturated with saccharine smugness that Fukagu really wanted to punch something.

_Preferably Danzō._

“That the child disappeared after just three days on your watch, Police Chief.”  The bandaged elder finished and Fugaku was ready for this meeting to just end already.

“I assure you, Elder Danzō, Hokage-sama, that we are expending every available effort to find young Hikaru.”  He gritted out in the most level voice he could manage.  Hatake Hikaru might be the bastard son of a bastard daughter, but he was an Uchiha, one of Fugaku’s own. The fact that the Elder was very nearly openly insinuating that _Fugaku_ was somehow responsible for the child’s abduction made the man’s head nearly burst from sheer fury.

“I’m sure.”  The Elder replied, the tone implying that he was certain that Fugaku was doing anything but.

“Danzō.”  The Hokage said sharply, and Fugaku was surprised because usually the Hokage was much more subtle in his disapproval of one of his Advisors in front of others.  “I believe that Fugaku-san is doing everything in his power to assist in Hikaru-kun’s recovery.”  The Hokage turned to address Fugaku himself.  “You may leave to return to your duties, Fugaku-san.  Please keep my office informed.”

Fugaku bowed and left as quickly as possible.

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“Sarutobi, you cannot be serious!”  Danzo rounded on the Hokage as soon as the Uchiha Clan Head had left the room.  “He’s complicit-“

“Enough.”  The Hokage snapped, rising to his feet and levelling a fierce glare at the Elder, taking a moment to be grateful that Homura and Koharu were keeping their silence.  “Hatake Kakashi is due back from his mission in less than three days and his son- _who he has not even had the chance to meet yet and was critically wounded while preventing the kidnapping of a Clan Heir on our watch_ \- is missing.  Either help find the boy or stand down, Shimura, but I will _not_ allow you to cause the effort to find Hikaru-kun to suffer any more unnecessary delays by calling pointless meetings!”  By the end of the statement the Hokage was nearly roaring, something that he had not done since long before the Kyūbi attack and Biwako’s death.

When they all went their separate ways shortly thereafter Utatane Koharu allowed herself to smile.  _It’s about time, you old monkey._   She thought as she made her way back towards her home.  _Homura and I were getting tired of trying to keep Danzō’s machinations to a minimum.  Roar, Hiruzen, and then find that blasted girl and give her that blasted Hat so we can all sit around drinking tea and watching our grandchildren play together._

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Hikaru sat huddled in a dingy concrete cell.  The white-haired man who had taken him had handed him off to some old guy with a cane and wrapped in bandages, but he had been drugged again shortly after that and had woken up in this windowless cell with steel bars and a rather annoying drip outside.  There was no cell across from him, only a grey wall with some suspiciously-looks-like-blood stains on it.

He had no idea how long ago he had been taken, but he was tired and hungry and his head was throbbing uncomfortably.

However, now he was awake and fully lucid, so maybe he could figure a way out of here.

Hikaru closed his eyes and did his best to clear his thoughts of unwanted clutter.  He had found that the best way for him to accomplish this was for him to envision a nice, cloudless day and try to grab on to the feeling of freedom and relaxation it offered him.  Once he felt himself relax he mentally called up his ability and began to search for nearby minds.

It felt like _hours_ had passed before he was able to touch the minds of those around him and not instantly be overwhelmed by how utterly _broken_ they felt. 

If Hikaru had to explain it, the minds he had touched up until now usually felt like a river or a fire or even a snowstorm.  They all had a fluid-feel to them as the mind was a wonderfully complex thing and could perform more than one task at a time.  The fluid feel seemed to help connect thoughts to emotion and emotions to thoughts, and always seemed vital to the mind’s survival to Hikaru.  Even the few retired shinobi that he had accidentally tried to use for practice and quickly cut the connections off with had still had that basic feel to their thoughts. 

All of them had felt whole.  Not whole as in perfectly healthy and entirely well-adjusted that nothing terrible had ever happened to, but as if the mind belonged to a real person and that person was in control of their own actions.

The minds around him now, however, felt shattered.  As if someone tried to make a doll come alive and failed, or if someone had tried to take a person and make them a doll and nearly succeeded.

Their minds were fragmented; layers upon layers of shattered glass and splinters of person wrapped in in a screaming cacophony of turmoil that seemed to curb the minds’ natural fluid state, causing it to seem dry and brittle.  Something in his gut clenched forebodingly about those minds, so while he sensed them he didn’t actually try to form a connection with any of them but Hikaru wondered if what he sensed was anything like what the Imperious Curse would have felt like to his new ability.

It sickened and angered him.

Hikaru fell asleep several times and grew progressively hungrier, but he kept trying, kept pushing to find a mind that he _could_ communicate with.

Finally he found one, but the connection was all fuzzy and he really couldn’t glean any useful information.  Just random blurred out images and snatches of vague emotions.

“ _Uh hello_?”  He tried after taking a deep breath and praying that this person could, (and would), help him.  They were far enough away that he could barely get the connection to stick, so he was not sure how well they would even be able to hear him.  “ _Can you hear me?  I probably sound like a creepy voice in your head but I’m real!”_

He got a vague idea of _I’m listening_ , so he hurried to continue.  “ _My name is Hikaru and I was taken from the Uchiha District by a man in a Konoha’s chūnin uniform, with white hair, dark green eyes, and a big shuriken-looking thing on his back.  He handed me over to a  strange-looking old guy with bandages around one side of his face, a bad arm on the same side, and an ‘x’ shaped scar on his chin.  They said something about a snake, traitors, implanting eyes, and fighting clouds but they drugged me again before I heard anymore._ ”  Hikaru bit his lip and concentrated.  “ _There’s about fifty other people around me, but they all feel weird.  Like broken dolls.  You’re straight up from me, I’m not sure how far, but it feels like you’re almost standing on top of the cell I’m locked in.  Please help!”_

The person’s mind started switching between thoughts rapidly, but he couldn’t understand them.  “ _I’m sorry, I’m really weak.  I don’t know how long ago I woke up and I haven’t eaten anything or even had any water.  I’m getting really tired now, this is taking a lot of chakra, which is pretty strange as it really doesn’t use much normally, but I think it is because you’re so far away_.”

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Maito Gai was many things.  Eccentric, exuberant, a training enthusiast.  However he was also loyal and hard-working, which was why he was searching for his hip and cool rival’s missing son long after dark even after a long day of missions.

When he had first heard the muffled voice, he had looked around for someone who was playing a prank on him, but he continued to listen.  The more the voice spoke, the fainter it became and the more Gai’s gut told him that this was important.

Once he was certain that the voice had stopped speaking he moved at his fastest speed to the Sarutobi Clan Compound.  “I have an urgent message for Hokage-sama!”  He told the ANBU guarding the gate and mere minutes later he was being ushered into the Hokage’s personal study.

“What is it, Gai-kun?”  The Hokage asked from his rather relaxed position from behind his sturdy desk and while puffing on his ever-present pipe, as soon as the doors were shut behind them.

“Forgive me, Hokage-sama!”  The jōunin told the man seriously.  “I fear this will sound far-fetched, but it is nonetheless the truth!  While I was searching for Hatake Kakashi’s missing son I was crossing Training Ground thirty-seven and I heard a faint voice in my head….“  Gai trailed off, seeing to understand just how strange that statement sounded, even to him.

The Hokage leaned forward, his eyes intent as he stared at Gai.  “Continue.”  He ordered sharply.

Gai nodded sharply and continued.  “The voice said that they were named Hikaru and had been taken from the Uchiha District by someone in a ‘ _Konoha chūnin uniform with white hair, dark green eyes, and a_ _huge shuriken-looking thing on his back’_.  The voice said they were drugged again, which leads me to assume they were drugged and then taken, but describes the abductor giving them over to a ‘ _strange-looking old guy with bandages around one side of his face, a bad arm on the same side, and an ‘x’ shaped scar on his chin.  They said something about a snake, traitors, implanting eyes and fighting clouds’._    The voice said they thought I was above their cell and that it was costing them a great deal of chakra to contact me, but that was all the information I gathered, Hokage-sama!”

“Thank you, Gai.  You are dismissed.  Do not repeat any of this information.  Get some rest.”  The Hokage gave the jōunin a meaningful look.

“Hai, Hokage-sama!”  The jōunin acknowledged before obeying.

A few minutes later the Hokage called for one of his guards.  “Inform Nara Shikaku that I wish to speak with him in the place that mirrors waters as soon as he can get there without raising suspicion.”  He ordered and the guard immediately moved to obey.

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This entire campaign was a giant risk, draped in the delicate threads of strategy and the bound together with nearly nothing save a weary man’s hope for the future, Hiruzen knew that.  Intimately, desperately and with the absolute certainty that if this failed, his village- _his entire life’s work, the life’s work of his teachers_ \- would come crashing down around him and there would be no one to blame but himself when all withered to ash and was scattered by the vortex of chaos.

Yet, the cogs were already in motion, moving forward according to his will, and he could only sit back and plan, pray, and plead for this gamble to carry him to victory.

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The ANBU Black Ops accounted for two percent of the Konoha shinobi population.  They are the best of the best, the specialists who have relentlessly honed their edge to a razor-fine point sharp enough to cut through deepest, darkest pits of humanity so that their beloved village might walk forever in the light.

The ANBU Black Ops, at its core, was divided into four platoons.  The largest was Alpha Platoon, which covered everything from cryptology, counter-intelligence, and information dissemination to political and socio-economic subterfuge.  Next was Beta Platoon who were largely responsible for things such as, but not limited to: target elimination, high-risk reconnaissance, hard-and-fast sweeps, and operation cleansing while also hosting the Hunter Nin Division.  Epsilon Platoon was where the bodyguards were, the one responsible for the safety of high-profile targets.  However, the were not simply bodyguards, as they were also the silent, unseen eyes and ears who took careful note of their surroundings and detailed their observations so that information could be compared and verified- one way or another.  The final platoon was Gamma Platoon, who were responsible for infiltration and regulation.  Gamma platoon did not simply infiltrate others’ territories they infiltrated their own as well, and they were tasked with overall village security and threat assessments.  The medical personnel who passed the ANBU Entrance assessments were slotted into teams where their skill sets complimented them, and thus did not have their own division.

The ANBU uniform was universal, though operative were allowed to tailor them to their skill sets.  The separate platoons, however, each had different masks assigned to them.  Animal masks for Alpha.  Botanical- or flower- masks for Beta.  Ether- or sky themed- masks for Epsilon.  Gradient- or color themed, based on the number they were assigned at random- for Gamma.

It was a simple, yet effective system by which to manage nearly five hundred shinobi, while still adding an extra layer to their identity, since most villages assigned masks based on a skill or personal attribute.  The idea for the ANBU Black Ops masks had come from Uzushio and the Uzumaki, and it had been Mito-sama who had implemented the  assignation requirements.

However, one thing that has always remained unchanging is the mandate laid down from the Shodaime himself:  They are the roots that protect the great tree.

And long has their leader, the Captain-Commander of the ANBU _ached_ for this reckoning.

As the black-flame masked- both the Captain-Commander and the Lieutenant-Commander wore horned masks decorated with black flames- leaders looked out over their assembled operatives they took one last bracing breath and exhaled before calling out, both to the room and those on standby.  “Darkness falls, shadows gather.”

The quietest whisper of cloth, the barest hint of movement and the faithful went to _war_.

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	8. In My Own Salvation

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Hatake Kakashi stared down at the picture of his son.  He had tucked it inside he pages of his _Icha Icha Violence_ and had stared at it every spare second he could find.  He had used Obito’s eye to ensure that the photo of the small, white-haired boy with the jewel-bright eyes was engraved forever upon his memory.

_His son._

Kakashi had survived the death of his mother, his father’s suicide, getting his teammate killed because he was an idiot, and being used as a way for his other teammate to commit suicide only thanks to Minato-sensei and Kushina-onee-san’s careful care and persistent prodding.  After the death of his sensei and his sensei’s wife, he had focused on his sensei’s legacy as part of the little boy’s protection detail until he’d been barred from even that much contact with Naruto.  Once he’d been ordered back to regular ANBU operations after Hokage-sama had dissolved Naruto’s protection detail, Kakashi had become utterly, irrevocably broken.  The last little bit of hope and light that had existed in him had grown cold and dim and merely surviving, (when not on vital missions that served to keep Naruto and the village safe), was absolutely _exhausting_ most days. 

So the knowledge that _he had a son_ was fairly terrifying, overwhelming, and bewildering to him.

When he’d originally heard that his sensei’s son had been nearly killed because he had stopped a kidnapping, Kakashi had merely been incredibly thankful that the blonde had been aright.  That feeling had remained as the front running emotion in his mind and heart even when he had heard that the child who had gotten between the nearly-fatal blow and the blonde boy was in critical condition and was unlikely to survive.

Kakashi had simply been thankful that it hadn’t been _Naruto_ at death’s door.

Then came the day of that explosively informative meeting, during which he had stood between Uchiha Fugaku and Yamanaka Inoichi in the Hokage’s office and Kakashi had been told that the child who had _saved Naruto’s life by taking the blow meant for the blonde_ and who _hadn’t been expected to survive_ was, in fact, _Kakashi’s son_.

Kakashi’s thoughts had been cast into overdrive as all the hate he felt for himself and all the ways he had failed every single one of his precious people had nearly swallowed him whole.

But, Kakashi’s team had a mission to complete, one that could not be delayed or taken by another team. 

The Raikage had sent a response to the Hokage, but the man had sworn that Kumo was being framed and Konoha was playing dirty because Kumo was supposedly getting interference from Konoha’s side of the borders.  The Raikage had gone on to not-so-subtly accuse the Hokage of being the aggressor and how there would be full-out war if the situation did not improve soon.

Kakashi had grown up in a time of war, had spent most of his life in a village strained and burdened by the ugly reality that was wartime Konoha.

The Hatake didn’t want that sort of childhood for his son- for his sensei’s son.  So he had exhaled all of his doubts and fears and misgivings and left to do his duty.  Trusting the Sandaime to look after his last remaining links to sanity and light while he braved the darkness.

The white-haired jōunin took a deep breath and grit his teeth as he waited for his team to rest a little.  His team had been tapped to make a run for the border of the Land of Hot Water and the Land of Frost to meet the emissaries from the Land of Lightning.  The Hokage had wanted to ensure that there was not any interference, so he had set the official rendezvous for nearly a week later, with Kakashi’s team bearing the Hokage response and expecting to receive the Raikage’s reply missive to secretly take back to the Hokage.

They had to be on guard for all manner of untoward actions- for everything from angry Konoha shinobi who were opposed to making a cease-fire with Kumogakure to Kumo itself making a maneuver for Konohagakure to lower her guard so they could lay siege to her more directly.

Still, even while being constantly on guard and twitchy, Kakashi had had plenty of time to drink in every detail of the photo.  Fortunately, it had been taken prior to his son’s injury- which he was resolutely not thinking about- and the boy had been laughing at something that Minato-sensei’s son had done, while another boy with ash blonde hair and vastly amused violet eyes seemingly shaking his head at the both of them.  The picture had been taken on the rooftop of a building- Kakashi was assuming the apartment building the boys lived in, since Hokage-sama said that the boys were neighbors with Naruto; Kakashi hadn’t had much time to watch over Naruto lately- that seemed to be creatively decorated with all manner of foliage.

His son’s hair seemed even brighter than Kakashi’s father’s hair had been with the greens and browns surrounding him, and his distinctively shaded eyes seemed to be the perfect foil to Naruto’s own bright blue.  The other boy’s eyes reminded Kakashi vaguely of Kushina’s- which made sense, given that he had heard the boy had manifested the Uzumaki Sealing Chains.  The little white-haired boy- Hikaru- and the blonde- Naruto- were what captivated the Konoha jōunin, however.  The two of them together representing everything _good_ and _right_ left in Kakashi’s life, and the man swore that he would find a way to _not fail them_ , as he’d failed everyone else in his life.

Kakashi had never planned on becoming a father- _not after Obito and Rin and Sensei and Kushina-nee_ \- but he _was_ a father; had been one for nearly four years.  Kakashi swore that he would be the best damn father he could be, even if the thought of fatherhood still _terrified_ him down to his core.

To Hikaru and Naruto and, if necessary, Takeru as well.

_I’ll do my best, please don’t hate me_.  _Please let me try to be your father, Hikaru.  Please let me be your brother and mentor, Naruto.  Please don’t keep them away from me, Takeru.  I didn’t know, I swear I didn’t!_  Kakashi mentally pled with the picture as he felt the tell-tale chakra spike of an incoming Konoha messenger and he reluctantly tucked his book away.

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The first phase of the operation was the subjugation of Danzō.  The old warhawk had far too many independent operations to simply be killed off without warning, as those operations could seriously undermine the village is left unchecked.

Because of this, the Hokage had made his first major gamble of the campaign.

“Thank you for coming, Fugaku-san.”  The Hokage greeted the Uchiha Clan Head after the man had entered the room with Nara Shikaku.  “I apologize for the subterfuge.”

“Hokage-sama.”  Fugaku greeted neutrally, as he took a seat next to the Jōunin Commander and fellow Clan Head.  “How may I serve the village today?”

The Hokage’s dark eyes had been sharp, the gaze a heavy thing that rang with a thousand secrets and a another thousand plans.  The Hokage tapped his pipe against his lips and leaned back in his chair.  “I called you here today, Fugaku.”

The lack of the honorific was not lost on anyone.

“As both the Sandaime Hokage and the Clan Head of the Sarutobi Clan.”

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Uchiha Fugaku sat up a bit straighter, his eyes alert and ready to activate his Sharingan at a moment’s notice if things went sour.  There had been ripples of unrest in the Clan recently, but the whispered rumors around the village were that some of the Uchiha were plotting to rebel.  Fugaku was virtually certain that none of his Clan members were behind the rumors- but it did not stop the suspicious looks from some of the other Konoha shinobi and that burned Fugaku’s pride as both an Uchiha and a Konoha shinobi.  The Uchiha Clan were integral to the village, vital to her defense.  The Clan held more positions and responsibilities than any other Clan ad yet they were pushed to a corner of the village and isolated from everyone as if they were _lesser_.

While the rumors were just useless drivel, Fugaku did not doubt that some of his Clan members were flirting with the idea of rebellion- if only because they felt isolated and rejected by the village that they loved and sweat and bled for.

The Uchiha Clan had always been mad for love.

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“Yes.”  The Hokage continued smoothly, interrupting Fugaku’s inner turmoil effortlessly as the man leaned forward and sat his pipe aside.  “I, as both Hokage and Clan Head of the Sarutobi Clan, am asking you, Uchiha Fugaku- Clan Head of the Noble Uchiha Clan, Chief of the Konoha Police Force, Commander of Konoha’s Internal Security Force, Konoha Jōunin- to help me neutralize the threat posed by a rogue element in our own backyard.”

Fugaku’s body did not betray his turmoil.

“Advisor Shimura must be neutralized in such a way that we can control his actions and their consequences until such a time as he can be permanently retired.”  The Hokage stated decisively, eyes resolved- if achingly sad and heartsick- and avidly fixed on Fugaku’s own dark gaze.

“By your will, Hokage-sama.”  Fugaku responded nearly instantly, a lifetime under the man’s service solidifying and coalescing in an instant even as his thoughts plunged into turmoil.

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Not all of Konoha’s Training Grounds were inside the village’s perimeter.  Most of the gēnin approved ones were, but the ones used by most of the upper forces were outside of the village’s walls, but inside the inner wall of Hashirama trees that were the village’s first line of defense in case of a full-frontal siege.

The training grounds were divided by seals long implanted into the trees that ringed them and allowed for the Barrier Teams to allocate certain Training Grounds to certain individuals or teams to lessen the likelihood of friendly-fire incidents and to help keep their shinobi’s techniques or _kekkei genkai_ secrets while working on new or experimental techniques.

As a matter of fact, some Training Grounds were entirely restricted and could only be entered after receiving a pass granting them access from the Barrier Teams.

The ANBU Tattoo allowed the ANBU Black Ops- and a few others whose positions involved seal inked directly into their skin- unilateral access so that they might respond to any threat- foreign oriented or domestically generated.

The Hokage and his War Council were using this to their advantage.

There was only one man who could ink the seals onto the ANBU operatives- the seals’ complete complexities only fully realized by the Hokage, the Captain Commander of the ANBU Black Ops, the Lieutenant-Commander of the ANBU Black Ops, and the Initiation Officer and Master Seal Sentinel of the ANBU Black Ops.

The Initiate Officer was only known to the Hokage, only took orders from the Hokage- including whom had earned their ANBU tattoos- and never left the Black Ops complex as himself.

With a little creative interpretation those outlying Training Grounds could become ambushes and only certain individuals would be allowed to leave once they had entered.

Danzō had once been Konoha’s greatest asset, but Hiruzen would be _dammed_ if he allowed the man to drag any more innocent Konoha shinobi into the spiraling abyss of madness that his old friends’ thought processes had become.  Hiruzen knew that some of the highly conditioned shinobi would fall, even with their commander under the Hokage’s control, but the Third wanted to spare as many of them as was feasibly possible.

When the signal went live, groups of shinobi were led into traps and subdued as peacefully as possible as the faithful began their purge.

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The ANBU Black Ops were the roots that protected the great tree.  There was no need for Nē, not anymore.  Their lost children would come _home_ , whether they wanted to or not.

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Nara Shikaku was entertaining the old warhawk in his office, when the signal came.  It came in the form of Inoichi and Chōuza casually barging in, with Uchiha Shisūi and a nondescript chūnin slipping inside the room just as the door sealed and the barriers went up, locking the Nē guards outside.

It was the work of an _instant_ to snare the man with his Shadow Possession Jutsu, before the sound of the door closing fully registered and Danzō could react.

(The Yamanaka were experts on the mind, the Nara were researchers, and _no one_ knew food quite like the Akimichi.)

They don’t let him speak, nor do they pause.  The Hokage had given them orders, and they were determined to see those orders through.  A tense ninety seconds passed before Uchiha Shisūi exhaled a labored breath of relief and he  nodded to the others.  “Kōtoāmatsūkami successful.”

(In another time, perhaps they would have considered their objective complete at that point and ended the operation, thinking they had won.  However, Danzō would use the cells of Hashirama and the stolen Sharingan in his arm to remove the effect in less than a week, leaving them entirely unprepared for his continued deceit.

In this moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen was an _optimist_ , not a _fool_.  He was weary and old and had had _enough_.)

Shikaku stuck out his tongue, forcing Danzō to mimic the motion, even as the nondescript chūnin’s form blurred and gave way to reveal the form of the Gama Sanin.  “You just had to push things, didn’t you, you old bastard.”  Jirāiya mumbled as he unsealed some supplies from a scroll and set to work. 

Danzō might have been cunning but it had taken Jirāiya three days to break down the Nē operatives’ seal- obtained from a moment of Yamanaka Mind Walking and a Nara strategy that involved Akimichi food- and two days for him and the Initiate Officer to design a master seal that would bind them all to the Hokage and the Hokage _alone_.

Danzō included. 

This wouldn’t fix all the things that Sarutobi-sensei suspected the man was involved with, but it was a start, and the failsafe seals that were going along the man’s spine were simply extra insurance.

What they were doing was cruel, Jirāiya knew, but he was Konoha’s Spymaster and he had heard whispers of Danzō’s deeds during his travels, and well-

Jirāiya had always blamed the twisted bastard for being the one who shattered the last bit of Orōchimaru’s already fragile sanity and quite frankly, he was just damn happy that sensei had decided to make his move.  If Minato had lived maybe things would have been different.

_But._   He thought as he sent chakra into the seal and it burned into the man’s tongue.  _He was leading us towards civil war.  Towards war in general.  And all I feel about this is pity, really.  He could have been a true hero, but he wasted all of his potential because he coveted the Hat.  What a waste._

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Senju Tsunade glowered darkly at the winning set of images on the gambling machine she had been playing.  She hadn’t lost _any money at all_ since she had decided to not return to the village, and no matter how tightly she attempted to cling to her apathy, the gnawing sensation of tremulous trepidation continued to grow louder.

_Breathe, Tsunade._   She told herself as she mechanically collected her winnings and moved to another game.

She won again.  By quite the margin.

Tsunade moved to the card tables, she _always_ lost at those.

Her hands were trembling when she looked at her cards, and for a medic-nin of Tsunade’s caliber, that wasn’t a sign she could ignore. 

Not any longer.

“Shizune!”  She barked tersely after she gathered her vouchers.  “We’re cashing out and leaving.  Go pack up our stuff and meet me by the southern entrance to town!”

“Yes, Tsunade-sama!”  the dark haired young woman replied obediently, even though a worried crease appeared between her brows.  _What is wrong with shishiou?_   She pondered worriedly.

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Hikaru was too weak to even think about fighting back when a blank-masked broken-doll person came into his cell and grabbed him by the arm.  He shut his eyes as he was tossed over a shoulder and the person began running.

The person ran through what seemed to be an endless labyrinth of tunnels before they finally burst out of an opening and ended up deep within the Konoha forests.  Hikaru could tell from the smell that it had rained recently, and the smell of damp earth and brief flashes of green grass made him exceedingly happy.

The white-haired boy could feel other minds nearby, but he was far too weak to even contemplate connecting with them, the brief contact he’d made with the one person however many days ago having completely exhausted him.  The fact that his chakra levels were dangerously low told him that the little bit of food and water that he had been given was more than likely drugged.

_Dammit_.  He thought fuzzily as the person carrying him continued to run.  _I should have known better_.

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It had been nearly a week since the Konoha messenger had come to Kakashi’s team with the news that they were to return to the village post-haste.  Finding out that his son was missing- he hadn’t even been gone the full two weeks!- had nearly seen him committing treason, but Hokage-sama had managed to talk him down. 

Kakashi had only subsided because f he went after Hikaru alone he’d likely tip off the bastard who had dared _touch his son_ and then Hikaru would end up far out of Kakashi’s reach.

So, three days later while he was obediently fighting his way through Nē operatives- they were trying to incapacitate instead of kill, but these operatives had _zero consideration_ for their own lives and were making things extremely difficult- Kakashi could only pray that he made it to his son before one of the brain-washed, illegal ANBU operatives managed to fully arm the self-destruct seals.  With Danzō fully under the Hokage’s control, they had hoped for this part of the operation to go a bit smoother, but apparently the old warhawk had had unexpected contingencies in place should he ever be compromised.

_Please let him be alright_.  Kakashi begged as he found the access door to the next section of the base.  _Please._

Kakashi had just made it to the back wall of the underground base, when Pakkun came running up to him.

“Kakashi!”  The pug panted as he jumped up onto Kakashi’s shoulder.  “I smelled him!  But they already moved him!  We need to head up!”

Kakashi had broken into his son’s apartment and gotten Pakkun a sample of his son’s scent.  It was easy for the pug to differentiate it from Takeru and Naruto’s scent because it was the scent that was somewhat similar to Kakashi’s own.

Kakashi paused long enough to inform Uchiha Itachi, his second, before he poured all of his speed into following Pakkun, who had jumped off his shoulder and had gone barreling off down the hall in order to lead him.

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Tsunade hadn’t been sure what, exactly, she was doing.  She still feared the sight of blood, the Hokage were still fools, and Konoha was still the source of all her pain, but…….

She had sent Shizune on ahead and had come around the backside of the village, near the old labyrinth of tunnels that had served as an evacuation route during the First Great Shinobi War.  The village was on high alert; she could feel the moving chakras of the shinobi guarding the village walls buzzing with the anticipation of battle.

Tsunade had just passed by the collapsed western section of tunnels and moved on towards Training Ground Seventy-Six- which was full of connected pools of water that came from a diverted section of the Naka River that ran over a series of rocky outcroppings and then curved back around to rejoin the river subsidiary- when she had nearly been run over a blank-masked ANBU Black Ops member who was carrying a barely lucid white-haired boy over his shoulder.  It was stupid, Tsunade knew, to see the child that she and Dan had never been able to have in that tiny boy, but the light reflecting off of the water the ANBU operative was running over gave the child’s hair a slight bluish tint and when the child’s eyes flashed open for the briefest moment all Tsunade had been able to see was the deeply jewel-toned color of her grandmother- although Mito’s eyes had been violet and this child’s eyes were green.

Yet, for one single, unending, soul-crushing heartbeat all Tsunade could see was the dreams that she and her lover had possessed for the future once more falling out of her reach. 

( _Nawaki’s corpse mutilated beyond recognition, Dan’s blood on her hands as she failed to save him_ -)

_Like hell._   Tsunade thought as something long-stressed inside of her shattered and reformed.  The persistent ache that had lingered just under her rib cage expanding into something that was both agony and pleasure, triumph and setback and Tsunade just wanted-

“ _Would it not be better, Tsunade-chan, to bear their dreams in their stead?”_   The words from her teacher’s missive threaded through her mind, wreathed in that patient tone that Sarutobi-sensei had always used when she was at her most stubborn.

“Oi, gaki!”  Tsunade bellowed, rolling up the sleeves of her jacket even as tears slipped out of her eyes as the turmoil within her heart and mind spilled over into the physical realm.  “Give me the white-haired midget!”

The ANBU Black Ops member didn’t stop.

_I guess that means that this little princess is one of that old wahawk’s private little army.  Alright then._   Tsunade smirked, her teeth flashing viciously in the waning light as she firmed her resolve and _roared_.  “Let’s do this the hard way, then!” 

Then the ground exploded and the waters heaved and in the midst of it all, Tsunade smiled.  _Can you see me, Dan?  Nawaki?_

The Nē member stumbled and fell and Tsunade was on him in an instant, tearing the white-haired child from his grasp and jumping back quickly.  _I lost my way, but I’m trying to find it again._

The fight that ensued had been going well, until the operative sliced his finger and flicked the blood towards Tsunade.

She stopped, instantly frozen by her crippling fear of blood even as the operative hit her several times and sent her careening backwards.  _I’m sorry, so sorry!_   She babbled to her beloved.  _I knew I never should have tried!  I’m so-_

Then there were bodies in front of her, _shielding her_.

“Hey.”  A brash voice resounded across the clearing.  “If you want nee-chan and Hikaru, you’ll have to go through us!”

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Naruto and Takeru were anything but stupid.  The agitation in their shinobi caretakers’ chakra and the lack of Hikaru had put the two boys into planning mode.

Hikaru could sense minds, but Takeru could sense _people_.  Anything and everything had some degree of chakra- to Hikaru and Takeru it felt almost like ambient, untapped magic but they couldn’t tap into it for very long without feeling really strange- and Takeru, and to a lesser extent Naruto, could sense people or distinct chakra signatures.  Naruto’s ability was more along the lines of sensing ill-intent or untruths while Takeru could sense how much chakra the person or object had and how smoothly it flowed.  The more refined and smoothly the chakra circulated through the person, the higher the likelihood that the person was a shinobi; while objects with distinct chakra could be anything from a person under a _Henge no Jutsu_ to a seal. 

That was a new discovery.

Hikaru was their _friend_ , though, and they knew his chakra flavor nearly as well as they knew their own- Takeru a bit more than Naruto.

They had slipped their caretakers nearly half a day ago and they had been trying to find their friend ever since.  All of a sudden, Hikaru’s weak chakra signal flared to life and both boys immediately turned, taking back-alleys and crossing yards without care while pursuing their friend.

“Never-“  Naruto puffed as he ran alongside Takeru.  “-been so grateful that Hikaru is such a jerk about memorizing the villages’ layout.”

“Right?”  Takeru huffed out in a breathless laugh as his feet continued forward.  “Totally going to work on the stupid chakra exercises so we can use chakra to run with.”

“Agreed.”

They were held up a little while trying to pass the Main Gate, but they managed.  The two boys skidded to a halt when the ground shook underneath them and they pushed themselves even harder because Hikaru’s chakra signature nearly disappeared afterwards.

They broke through the tree line and their hearts nearly stopped when they saw Hikaru’s mop of white hair atop a small, crumpled form, a young-looking blonde-woman and an ANBU Black Ops member with a blank mask.

Naruto leapt forward, placing himself firmly between the downed woman and Hikaru and the Black Ops member. Takeru a half a heartbeat behind.

_I won’t let Hikaru get any more hurt, not when I can help it._   The blonde swore as he and Takeru went should-to-shoulder in front of the blonde woman and their friend.

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When Tsunade looked up there was a blonde boy with spiky hair standing shoulder-to-shoulder with a boy with flyaway ash blonde hair with red threaded through it.  The darker blonde turned his head a bit to look at her.  “Are you alright?”

Tsunade’s heart stopped for a second as she took in the violet eyes- _Mito-obaa-chan’s eyes, a distant part of her recognized_ \- and then there was blood, so much blood as the lighter-toned blonde took a rather severe hit to the shoulder and Tsunade’s world _caught fire_.

_Never again_.  She vowed as she rose to her feet and sent the operative flying into a nearby rock formation with a sickening crunch before she twirled around and took in the rather heavily bleeding blonde, the wary darker blond with Mito’s eyes, and the weakly struggling white-haired boy.  _Not on my watch.  Never again_.

“Who are you?”  The darker blonde asked her warily.

Tsunade smirked, honest amusement filling her even as she felt other chakra signatures begin to close in on them.  “You can call me Tsunade-nee, gaki.”

“Heh.”  The blonde wheezed out painfully.  “Think I’ll call you baa-chan, _old lady_.”

“Whatever, you little gaki!”  Tsunade grunted as she took up a fighting stance in front of the two boys and tossed out an Earth-Style Jutsu to divert the incoming attack.  “Make sure that white-haired midget stays out of the line of fire!”  Tsunade sensed more than saw the reinforcements of the Nē operative arrive.  “You stay with him, understand, brats?”

“We got it, baa-chan!”

Tsunade smirked at her aggressors.  “You brats picked the wrong opponent.”  Her amber eyes flashed dangerously as she stomped on the ground and caused it to explode, scattering her opponents.  “I am Senju Tsunade.  Granddaughter of the Shodaime-“  She punched two of them through some rocks and spun gracefully, sweeping the legs out from under another and vaulted over another set of them to come up with a precise strike to the back of their necks.  “-the grand-niece of the Nidaime-“ She punched another blank-masked operative into a group of his fellows and then took the whole group out with a strong punch.  “-and a student of the Sandaime.    _I won’t let you tread of my family’s legacy_.”

There was a slow clap from the east and Tsunade turned dangerous eyes to the newcomer.

“My, my Tsunade.  It’s certainly been a while, hasn’t it?”  Orochimaru purred slyly as her former teammate came into view.

“What do you want, Orochimaru?”  Tsunade asked fiercely, amber eyes full of emotion as she gazed at her former teammate.

Several things happened in rapid succession.  Hatake Kakashi and his team burst onto the scene, more Nē operatives showed up, and a group of people including Sarutobi-sensei and Jirāiya all arrived.

Sarutobi’s eyes fell on his traitorous student, but it was his female student he addressed.  “Tsunade-chan, I did not realize that you had come.”

Tsunade sent her teacher a wobbly but proud grin, chin slanted slightly upwards even as she raised her hands up into a fighting position.  “Well, I figured I should come see my cute little nephew.”  She replied in a measured voice.

“Indeed.  Shall we?”

Orochimaru had opened his mouth- to spew out vitriol, no doubt- when the little white haired midget spoke; his quiet voice cutting through the thick, expectant silence effortlessly.

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Kakashi could barely breathe, but he forced his body to move towards the small form topped with white hair.  His hands shook as he carefully turned over the small body.

His son was deathly pale, bleeding from busted stiches, shivering from fever, and the after-effects of the infection that was no doubt setting in if the reddened, angry flesh visible along the line busted stiches was any indication.

Bright green eyes fluttered open briefly, the white lashes standing out in stark contrast from the flushed skin.  As awareness slowly coalesced pain became apparent in his son’s – _his son’s, his flesh and blood and bleeding and infection and nonono_ \- eyes.

All of a sudden the boy’s friends were beside him and Hikaru gifted them with a sort-of half smile before turning a curious, guarded gaze towards Kakashi.

Hikaru met Kakashi’s mismatched gaze solemnly and for a heartbeat Kakashi’s entire world just stopped.

Then the boy smiled tremulously and swallowed heavily a few times before-

“Hi, tou-san.”  The boy said quietly.

“Heya, kiddo.”  Kakashi replied, voice rough and thick with unspent emotions.  “Sorry I’m late, got lost on the road of life.”

The little boy smiled wanly at him and chuckled wetly.  “Happens.”  The boy mumbled before wincing and struggling to sit up, which Kakashi and the other two boys- _Naruto and Takeru_ \- tried to stop him.

“Broken.”  He rasped weakly. “The hebi-man is _broken_.  Forgotten.  Left behind.  Put on a shelf an’ left to gather dust.  You gotta…..”  The white haired boy struggled up and looked directly at Orochimaru, despite his friends and the elder Hatake trying to hold him down.  The surrounding shinobi all still tensed and ready for battle.  “Never gonna see them again if you don’t greet Death like a _friend_.”  Hikaru finished firmly before his eyes rolled up and his body slumped into unwilling unconsciousness.

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A heartbeat passed, during which no one moved, they barely even dared to _breathe_.  Orochimaru’s eyes were focused raptly on the white-haired boy, sharpened in a way that the gaze reminded Tsunade of a time when his eyes weren’t full of insanity and hate.

A startled, shaken golden gaze met compassionate amber, weary black, and wounded coal- and eternity existed in that single, suspended moment.

_Sister.  Brother.  Mentor.  Friends.  Family.  Blood.  Screams.  War.  Betrayal.  Madness.  Obsession.  Discovery.  Aching loneliness.  Being left behind, discarded.  So much anger turned to rage.  Sweet lies.  Ugly truths.  Broken bonds._   _Wanting to belong.  Hurt them before they hurt you.  Make them less, because you are more.  Running out of time.  Terror.  Desperation._

“Never gonna see them again if you don’t greet Death like a _friend_ ”.

Then the moment _shattered_ and Orochimaru of the Sanin- _the most feared Nuke-nin in the history of Konoha-_ turned around and _fled_ without ever firing off a jutsu.

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	9. Pack

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For a long moment after Orōchimaru’s departure a crushing sort of stillness filled the air.  It was hot and heavy and cloying yet carried with it an undercurrent of bright, unrepentant hope. 

A chance for change and healing to that which had been thought of as lost.

Sarutobi Hiruzen was an old man, wearied from war and death and sorrow.  Yet there was a part of him- an echo of a memory of a brilliant man with the strength of a tempest paired with the gentle heart of a servant- that looked at the world and only saw what it _could_ be.

Sarutobi took a few heaving breaths- the burn of tears against his eyes and the resurgent roar of a familiar fire in his soul- before he spoke, his voice level and full of all the command one would expect from the Sandaime Hokage.  “Captain Raven tail my former student but only as far as the edge of the boundaries, we have enough that needs to doing as is.  So long as my former pupil does not show signs of returning to wreak havoc, we will leave him for now.”

“Hai, Hokage-sama!”  The faithful replied without pause.

A rasping, wet cough cut through the lull and Sarutobi was only a heartbeat behind Tsunade as she leapt to young Hikaru’s side.

“Medic.”  Tsunade called sharply, her hands trembling as she shakily bushed a few bone-white strands away from the pale, flushed face of her tiny patient.

But Hiruzen _knew_ Tsunade, had known her since she was little more than a bright eyed little baby on her grandmother’s lap and so he understood how much willpower it had taken for her to step foot inside the village. 

Let alone to once again take up the fight. 

 _You have always been such a brave girl, my dear._   _So willing to fight for that which you love_.  Hiruzen thought with an aching sort of fondness as he watched his female student direct the medic in caring for the wound, going so far as to lay her hands over the medic’s gloved ones to manually direct he healing chakra through the tiny body.

Takeru and Naruto stood just behind the kneeling Kakashi, the white-haired father kneeling by his son’s head and running tentative, but gentle fingers through the sweat and grime soaked hair.  Everyone else was arrayed in a loose circle around the little boy who had managed to cause the most feared nuke nin in Konoha’s history turn tail and flee with a handful of words. 

 _That boy is going to be highly sought after by our T &I Division.  Though they’ll have to pry little Hikaru away from Kakashi, and I imagine the boys are looking to be on the same team as well, doubtful as such an occurrence would be due to their unique abilities._  Hiruzen thought somewhat bemusedly as Hikaru’s two young friends shuffled a bit closer to Kakashi- though whether that was to be closer to their friend or further away from their newly arrived, quite unhappy looking, respective caretakers remained to be seen.

However, they were still in the middle of a live operation and eventually Hiruzen reluctantly turned his attention away from the scene- though he did catch Tsunade’s eyes and give her one more tender, welcoming smile- and spun on his heel, heading towards the next location.

Jirāiya, pacing Hiruzen to his left, was smiling so widely Hiruzen thought it should hurt.  But Hiruzen offered his white-haired student an answering smile- perhaps not as wide, but just as bright, just as fiercely hopeful- and yet-

-yet the same feeling was singing all around them.  Thrumming through the tightly leashed chakra of the operatives, both masked and not; and fairly resounding through the Hashirama trees, through their very leaves.  

_An exultant symphony of change._

Hiruzen could see it, could hear it; he could _feel_ it. 

Deep down into his very bones he could feel it.  Everything.  From the sharp, bitter knife that was Danzō’s betrayal to the jagged, persistent ache of Orōchimaru’s abandonment- but in the wake of a thousand disappointments and griefs, there was a nearly overpowering rush of pure, undiluted hope and a joyful outpouring of so very, very much love.  The same love that Hiruzen saw in the eyes of fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, cousins that risked their lives at his word come back around to greet him.  Thrice as potent and sixteen thousand glistening shades of brilliant as the breaking dawn scattered warm rays of sunshine on a wounded, but stronger Konoha.

 _This_.  Hiruzen thought as he settled down to the grimmest part of the operation.  _This is what I’m fighting for.  Why I am still fighting.  Why I am Hokage._

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For as wounded as little Hikaru was, with Tsunade-sama’s expert assistance Kakashi was able to take his little boy home after just a few hours in the hospital.  Though, after Tsunade-sama confirmed a few things she had given the little boy a pretty hefty dose of sedative, to help the child sleep through the worst of the healing pain.

Tsunade-sama had been able to heal Hikaru more thoroughly in the few hours she had been in Konoha than the hospital had been able to in all the weeks Hikaru had spent in there prior to his initial release. 

Kakashi swore to buy her some expensive sake, which she had gleefully noted and cackled about.

Much to Kakashi’s amusement the other two boys had been dragged off by their respective caretakers, who had been none too pleased with their respective disappearing acts.

Kakashi’s apartment was small, really only meant for one person, but he did have a beat up old couch that was perfect for naps.  The young father fussed over the blankets and pillows he had laid Hikaru out on for more time than strictly necessary, using it more as a chance to touch his slumbering child more than anything.

He was just so _small_.  Tiny, even.  Kakashi sat crouched down beside his couch, eye level with his little boy, for an indeterminate amount of time.

There were just _so many details_ to take in.

Kakashi could definitely see Minami’s influence in the shape of the boy’s eyes. 

Minami had had nearly perfectly almond-shaped eyes, though Hikaru’s were a bit fuller near the middle- probably his fault, Kakashi thought ruefully, as his eyes were much rounder than most of his peers.

Then there were Hikaru’s tiny fingers- ten of them, Kakashi had counted, _twice_ \- that were small and child-like but already lightly calloused.  His son’s skin- the fevered flush was mostly gone by now, thanks to Tsunade-sama’s excellent skills- was lightly tanned, though Kakashi was unsure how much of that was due to the sun or if Hikaru had inherited some of Minami’s darker coloring. 

Kakashi was a little choked up to note that his son’s hair was nearly the exact same shade as Kakashi remembered his father’s being.  Proud shock white strands with teasing hints at other colors depending on how the light fell across them.  One of Kakashi’s earliest memories was of watching his father’s hair while the man slept, a treasured moment he guarded fiercely and had never, ever shared with anyone.

 _Well, I suppose I’ll have to change that_.  Kakashi thought reluctantly, as the knowledge that _he was a parent_ crashed down upon with all the force of a wind jutsu.

Eventually, after waking the boy up to use the bathroom and drink down some doctored chicken-flavored broth Tsunade had made up for him- she had terrorized one of the staff members into going and buying the broth, the corridor gossip had informed Kakashi- Kakashi reluctantly gone to his own bed. 

The apartment was small enough that the bedroom was directly off the living room, but Kakashi left the door cracked open, just in case.

Sleep was a long time in coming that night. 

Kakashi, lying there in his suddenly far too large bed nearly obsessively counting the soft exhales of his son, allowed his mind to run through exactly how much had gone wrong and could have gone even more wrong if he had been just five minutes later or if Tsunade-sama had not come back or-

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Hikaru blinked back to awareness slowly, his eyes strangely heavy and gritty.  It took a few tries for him to unravel himself from his cocoon of blankets, but eventually he managed to lever himself upright and pad over towards the open door of the bathroom. 

After relieving himself and washing up as quietly as possible, Hikaru quietly stole back over towards the couch.  However, before he could climb back inside his recently-vacated cocoon he glanced towards the slightly ajar door of the bedroom and he just _froze_.

Despite his mental age, one of Harry’s dearest childish wishes had been to curl up to sleep beside his parents.  A wish that had never truly gone away, but had merely burned in the back of his mind, unfulfilled and lonely.

But……

But now he had a parent.  An alive parent who wanted him.  It might not be James or Lily or Sirius but this man was his dad.  And unlike the Dursleys, this man _wanted_ him, despite the unexpectedness of Hikaru/Harry’s arrival in his life.  Hikaru bit his lip and fussed with the edges of the soft blankets- the top one was covered in tiny pictures of dogs, which Hikaru highly approved of- as he mulled over his options.

Without truly being aware of his action he dragged the blankets off the couch and crept through the silvery slats of moonlight over to the slightly ajar door.  Feeling more than a touch embarrassed- but not truly able to deny the yearning ache for such a thing- Hikaru slipped inside and carefully padded over to the bed.  It was a bit of a struggle, but soon enough Hikaru had climbed up into the bed and settled down beside his father.  Not quite brave enough to disturb the covers, Hikaru covered himself back up with the blankets from the couch and snuggled up to the warm, strong body.

He was once again deeply asleep within moments.

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Kakashi had been awake since his son had woken up, vaulted back into awareness by the change in the little boy’s breathing patterns.  There had been a fierce, quick debate about getting up to help the boy use the bathroom, but then Kakashi remembered that his son had been living on his own with another young child- and sweet Kami _who had thought that was a good idea?!?_   Hikaru was practically a _baby_!- and had forced himself to stay put.

Kakashi had been involved in another debate over whether or not to ‘wake up’ when he had heard the soft sounds of rustling.  When his door creaked open- just a slight creak, but a necessary defense that most jōunin employed- Kakashi had kept himself ‘asleep’ mostly out of a sense of panic over what he _should_ be doing.

The soft sounds of disgruntlement that Hikaru made as he scaled the bed and settled next to him had been positively adorable to Kakashi and then his heart had pretty much fizzled out into a pile of affectionate goo when his son had cuddled right up to him and promptly dropped back off into sleep.

Kakashi waited a few more moments to be sure, but he cautiously cracked his good eye open and stared down at his little boy in open wonder.

_He was so tiny._

Without really realizing what he was doing Kakashi reached out and lightly traced his son’s features.  He watched, utterly transfixed, as his sole digit carefully traced the contours of his son’s face- the full curve of his baby cheeks, right off the tip of his pointy little nose, gently circling around the slightly parted lips, the warm breaths dancing across his skin reassuringly; and then trailing up to his baby soft hair, though the scent of the hospital’s soap slightly irritated Kakashi’s sensitive nose-  and all Kakashi could really think of was that _this adorable, impish, tiny little human was his son_.

His child.  His _puppy_.

Kakashi exhaled a heavy, shaky sigh before he reached forward and pressed a tender kiss to his puppy’s forehead.

“I don’t know how to be a father.”  Kakashi whispered out into the sacred silence.  “And I’m sure I’ll screw it up.  But, for what it’s worth, you’re the center of my whole world now, Puppy.  I-”  Kakashi broke off, terrified to vocalize the rest but feeling as if he needed to, if only to reaffirm the truth to himself.  “-I love you, Puppy.  With all that I’ve got left.  I hope that’ll be enough, but I’ll certainly understand if it isn’t.”

Kakashi’s throat closed over and a whine attempted to push its way out of his chest, but the man marshalled his emotions and curled around the tiny body, as if Kakashi’s flesh could shield his tiny son from the horrible, ugly truths of the world.

Unseen by his father, Hikaru smiled softly, curling his small fingers and toes into the soft blankets as huddling even closer to his fath- no, his _dad’s_ warmth.

“Inu-tou.”  Hikaru mumbled sleepily into the fabric separating him from his dad’s chest.  “I think I’ll call you inu-tou.”

And, curled snugly together, the final two members of the Hatake Clan _slept_.

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To say that Naruto and Takeru were in _extreme amounts of trouble_ for ditching their respective caretakers and haring off on their own to find Hikaru was a _severe understatement_.

Hokage-sama was highly unamused, as were the Hyūga and the Aburame.

The boys had stood firm in the face of their punishment, however, and the Hokage eventually left the terms of their punishments up to Tsunade.

Three days later, both boys shot him highly betrayed looks from their respective positions within the extremely dusty Senju Clan Compound.  The Hokage merely smirked at them and continued to sip sake with his former female student while they sat on the freshly cleaned porch.

“I take it they’re dying to work on the gardens?”  The Hokage asked her, shooting his smug looking former student a knowing look.

“Yep!”  Tsunade chirped cheerfully even as she raised a warning brow at the sunshine-yellow blonde, who immediately went back to scrubbing the wood floor.  “But I’ve banned them from gardening until the houses are all cleaned up.”  She informed the aging Hokage with a wicked smirk playing around her lips. 

“Ah.”  The Hokage replied, trying to muffle his snickers into his saucer of sake.  “Explains the looks of betrayal.”

“I did send Shizune to tend their little rooftop garden.”  Tsunade admitted, quietly enough to not be heard by the grumbling children in her care.  “According to her they did quite well at maximizing their space.  I had their apartments packed up for the moment but their next task will likely involve getting our gardens up to scratch and transplanting their rooftop garden to here.”

“Actually, Tsunade-chan, the Aburame requested that it be left there.”  The Hokage informed his student just as quietly.  “They were quite impressed with how the children managed to grow so many delicate plants and the rooftop is an excellent strategic location for the Aburame to lay in wait and keep an eye on the western side of the market, which is heavily used by foreign merchants.”  The Hokage chuckled a bit and sipped at his sake.  “Of course, young Hikaru is bound to be a bit put out.  I’m told he designed the layout of the project.”

“How is the tiny gaki?”  Tsunade asked after a long moment of companionable silence.

Hiruzen chuckled.  “I think that young Hikaru-kun is becoming acquainted with his not-so-quietly terrified, rather overprotective father.”

Tsunade’s sake nearly went up her nose as she lightly choked.  “That Hatake brat has some leftover pack instincts from his Inuzuka ancestors, doesn’t he?  Wasn’t his mother an Inuzuka who couldn’t understand the Clan dogs?  That was why the Inuzuka Clan allowed her to marry and take the Hatake Clan surname.”

“Kakashi-kun chose to contract with Lesser Dogs instead of signing his father’s Wolf Contract.”  Hiruzen told her while Tsunade sent Naruto a rather quelling glare when the sunshine-blonde seemed nearly ready to pitch a fit.  “But I imagine that Kakashi-kun is so overwhelmed from the past few days’ events that young Hikaru-kun is getting a rather large dose of overprotective parent.”

“Serves the little hellion right.”  Tsunade growled viciously, her nerves still quivering and her hands trembled lightly as she remembered having her greatest fear splayed out before her.  A young boy tiny and fragile much like Nawaki had been bleeding out in front of her- because some of his wounds had reopened when he had initially hit the ground and she’d-she’d nearly-

A weathered hand settled familiarly against her arm and her former sensei graced her with a gentle, knowing smile.  “You performed brilliantly, Tsunade-chan.”  He told her, patting her arm lightly before withdrawing his appendage and settling back against his chair. 

Tsunade gave her teacher a shaky, but healing smile and settled back against her chair again. 

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Kakashi’s apartment was not made for two people, but until he could work up the nerve to return to the Hatake Clan grounds and unseal it for cleaning, it was the safest place he had for him and his little Puppy to bunker down in.

Aforementioned Puppy was lying on Kakashi’s battered but comfortable couch, safely ensconced under a small mountain of blankets and ever-vigilant ninken.  The stitches that Hikaru had busted open during the altercation with the Nē operative and Tsunade-sama had actually been a bit of a blessing as some of the poisoned blood from the infected areas has been able to escape and flush the wounds a little.  It wasn’t a glorious occurrence, however, as now Hikaru had a rigged-up IV drip full of antibiotics going into him, but things could have been much, much worse.

The little guy had woken up a few times and had given Kakashi- who had pulled down his mask so as to make his son more comfortable- a strange look when he’d first called him ‘Puppy’.   Kakashi had scrambled to assure the boy that it was fine, and Kakashi would call him whatever his son felt comfortable with- but Hikaru had just smiled up at Kakashi after a long moment and called him ‘inu-tou’ in a weak, rasping voice before falling back to sleep.

Kakashi’s heart had felt too big for his chest cavity for a long while afterwards and Obito’s eye had teared up while Kakashi had stared down at the slumbering white-haired toddler.

It had been just after that he’d summoned his pack and after being introduced- well, properly, anyways- they had stuck around to help guard the little guy.  Kakashi’s eyes roved briefly over his ninken, more than slightly amused by how they all had themselves positioned.

Pakkun, the small brown miniature pug with the bandage wrapped around his front right foreleg was resting just over Hikaru’s left shoulder. 

Bull -the largest of his summons and the only one unable to speak the human language- was the tough-looking black bulldog with the spiked collar had stretched out on the floor in front of the couch. 

Urushi, the tawny-and-white medium sized dog with the slanted eyes that made him look permanently angry was lying on the back of the couch, with his keen nose pointed towards the apartment door. 

Then there was Shiba, another medium-sized dog with grey fur and a white underbelly, with the fur on the crown of his head forever spiked into a Mohawk-like ‘do who was lying in wait at the window end of the couch, should anyone not invited dare to enter that way. 

Bisuke, with his tan fur with patches of darker browns, floppy ears, slightly-smaller-than-medium-size and droopy eyes was lying behind the couch, nearly blending in with the floor.  Really, the kanji for ‘shinobi’ between his brows was what caught Kakashi’s attention whenever he had to move towards the kitchen, otherwise the man would have tripped over his ninken companion more than once!

Akino was just slightly smaller than Bull and solidly tan like Bisuke, but his sunglasses made him easy to see from his place just in front of the _genkan_.

Ūhei was a sienna and white greyhound-like ninken who had a fascination with having bandages wrapped around his head and neck, with a smaller set always around his front paw.  He had taken up residence near Kakashi’s feet, while the man lounged in the recliner near the couch and kept watch over his son.  Guruko was the last of Kakashi’s pack, and the tan and white dog with the slightly floppy ears and pronounced whiskers was curled up near Hikaru’s feet, near the window end of the couch.

 _I think anyone who tries to come in will be covered in ninken long before they make it inside._   The man thought, more than just a little amused but immeasurably grateful to his four-legged partners.

Hikaru shifted a little and let out a quiet whimper of pain before his eyes fluttered open.  “Inu-tou?”

“Right here, Puppy.”  Kakashi replied removing his feet from the coffee table and putting his book away before he leaned forward to place a hand on Hikaru’s forehead.  Kakashi peeled the flexible and paper-thin oxygen mask off of his son’s nose and mouth and powered down the seal that fed oxygen to the mask.  “How are you feeling, Puppy?”

Hikaru’s eyelids fluttered a few time, but eventually the boy’s gaze fixed itself upon the older man.  “Hurts.”  He told him honestly, silently basking in the fact that he was _with his dad_ and his dad _wanted_ him. 

Knowing that you were loved and actively being loved were two very different situations, after all.

“I know, Puppy.”  Kakashi told him, ruffling Hikaru’s white locks gently before placing a warm hand against the boy’s shoulder.  “The medics said that it would ache pretty badly until the antibiotics are done- which won’t be until tomorrow- but if you eat something I can give you a pain pill.” 

The boy made a face.  “Not sure if I could eat something solid.”  He admitted to his father after a moment.  “But I could probably keep down some heavy broth.”

Kakashi nodded agreeably and stood, his hand reluctantly falling away from his son.  “I’ll have to step out and ask one of the other jōunin to grab you something because the cupboards are pretty bare.  Any preferences?”

“Um.  Miso or vegetable broth?”  Hikaru replied.

“Good choices!”  Kakashi said with a smile as he tugged his mask upwards.  “Miso with eggplant is my favorite!”

Hikaru perked up and moved to sit up a little, dislodging Pakkun and causing his father to rush over and help settle him.  A few minutes later he was propped up with some pillows with a contently humming Pakkun settled in his lap, receiving ear scratches.  Kakashi had also gotten Hikaru to drink about half a glass of water, so his throat was not nearly as scratchy. 

“I make an awesome miso and eggplant soup!”  Hikaru informed Kakashi cheerfully.  “I like to make eggplant curry, too!  Also, hot-and-sour eggplant and an eggplant and tomato bake…… _thing_.”  The boy blushed brightly under his father’s amused gaze.  “Takeru really likes eggplant and Naruto eats it easier than other vegetables, so I’ve tried about every eggplant recipe I could get my hands on.”  He admitted somewhat sheepishly.

“Maa, good to know!”  Kakashi told his son, unable to resist ruffling his hair again.  “So you like to cook?”

“Yeah.”  Hikaru told him with a grin.  “The other two can barely _boil water_ without burning it, so I hold food over their heads so they’ll do the worksheets I make for them.”

“Yeah, Hokage-sama mentioned that you were a bit of a prodigy.”  Something sad flitted through his father’s eye, causing Hikaru to raise an inquisitive eyebrow.  “It’s just-“  Kakashi ran a hand through his hair and blew out a heavy breath.  “I graduated from the Academy at five, Puppy.  You’re already three and I just found you.  I just don’t-“ Kakashi broke off the statement and looked at the floor intently for a few minutes.  “I don’t want to lose you so soon.”  He admitted after a long moment.  “Not when I’ve only just found you.  You’re a legal adult once you hit chūnin and gēnin are considered young adults.”

Hikaru rolled his eyes and huffed.  “I just found you too, _inu-tou_.”  He told his father with no little amount of exasperation.  “Besides, I want to graduate with Naruto and Takeru and those two won’t graduate until ten, at the earliest.  Their chakra control _sucks_.  It’ll take them _that_ long to manage the _Bunshin no Jutsu_.  Besides, you’re my tou-san.  I’ll _always_ need you.”

Kakashi looked at his exasperated son for a long moment. 

Kakashi remembered his own childhood, how he had pulled away from his father and had been determined to be the perfect shinobi, the perfect tool. 

Hikaru was……

 _Different_.  Kakashi realized as a faint, fond smiled curved his lips.  _More like Chichi and Minami than me._   Something loosened in his chest and he ruffled his son’s hair again.   _I’m glad._

“You can tell me all about it when I get back, alright?”  Kakashi said out loud after his son gave him a weird look.

“Sure.”  Hikaru shrugged lightly.

“Keep watch guys, I’ll be back.”

“Got it, boss.”  Pakkun replied.

Kakashi’s loud bout laughter at Hikaru’s surprised yelp of- “ _You can talk?!”-_ lasted until he reached Genma’s apartment.

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When Shiranui Genma opened his apartment door he was tempted to ask if the person who looked like Hatake Kakashi was an imposter.  Mostly because he had not seen Kakashi this…..unbent since before the Yondaime had passed.

Actually, since before he’d lost his remaining gēnin teammate after the Kannabi Bridge mission.

“Yo, Genma!”  Kakashi cheerfully greeted blond Tokujo Jounin.  The Hatake scratched at the back of his head a bit sheepishly when Genma just continued to give him a flat stare.  “Would you mind doing me a favor?”

Genma clicked his ever-present senbon against his teeth and leaned against his apartment door.  “What do you need?”  He asked curiously.  Kakashi and the word _favor_ in the same sentence tended to be a rather interesting situation.

“Well.”  Kakashi said with one of his ridiculous eye-smiles.  “My Puppy woke up and he’s hungry for some soup.  Would you grab something for us?”

“I’m not your personal food-stall vendor, Hatake.”  Genma scowled at the other jōunin.

“Maa.”  Kakashi said with a bit of a nervous laugh.  “Apparently my Puppy can cook, so I won’t be mooching off of you as much as I used to.”  Kakashi frowned a little.  “Once he’s better.  I don’t want him doing anything strenuous until he’s fully healed.”

 _Dammit_.  Genma thought as a smile formed against his will _.  As tired as I am of Kakashi’s mooching I want to meet his Puppy._   “Fine, Hatake.  Give me about a half-hour, alright?”

Kakashi- the idiot- beamed at him.  “Thanks, Genma!  I owe you one!”  He turned to walk away.

Genma cleared his throat expectantly.

Kakashi turned a little and laughed nervously.  “Oh, right.  I should give you money, hm?”

Genma didn’t dignify that statement with a response, but he did quirk an eyebrow.  _It usually takes at least five minutes of bitching to get Kakashi to fork over any sort of payment.  Apparently he’s taking this fatherhood thing pretty seriously_.  The man thought somewhat amusedly as Kakashi shoved some money into his hands before quickly disappearing back into his apartment.

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“Hokage-sama?”  Uchiha Fugaku asked, somewhat dumbfounded.

The Hokage- seated behind his nearly overflowing desk- smiled tiredly, but kindly at the Uchiha Clan Head.  “It is beyond time that the Uchiha Clan receives the recognition they deserve for your overwhelming contributions to the village.”

“Not that I’m not grateful, Hoakage-sama, but _why now_?”  Fugaku persisted as he started somewhat apprehensively at the scroll that the Sandaime had presented him not three minutes ago.

“Because fear of what your Clan _might_ do is what led us to this point.”  The Hokage replied gravely, absently lighting his pipe and placing it between his lips.  “Because I have never blamed the Uchiha Clan for the loss of my wife, nor have I entertained the thought of a loyal Konoha shinobi being behind the Kyuubi’s attack on the village.”  Sarutobi sighed heavily and took a deep draw from his pipe, allowing the smoke to fill his lungs for a long, sweet moment before he released it and allowed himself to voice the crux of the matter.  “Because I do not hold the Uchiha Clan responsible- through action or inaction- for the loss of my successor.”

Fugaku sucked in a sharp breath, aware that the other shinobi within the room had also nominally reacted to such a bald statement.

The loss of the Yondaime Hokage was still a deep, aching wound even after so many years had passed. 

Namikaze Minato had been a brilliant shinobi and an even greater man, someone who Fugaku had considered a cherished comrade and a good friend, despite their quarrels.  That the Uchiha Clan- arguably the village’s preeminent Clan after the fall of the Senju- had been told to _stand down_ during the Kyuubi’s rampage of the village had been a point of internal contention within the Clan.

Then there was the omission of the lifetime of service of Uchiha Kaiyo, who had also perished that night.  While the Clan at large did not know of Uzumaki Mito’s condition, Kaiyo’s assignment had come to Fugaku’s attention as Clan Head once he had taken over.  The eldest daughter of Uchiha Kagami, Kaiyo had been in the service of Uzumaki Mito- and then later Uzumaki Kushina- from the age of six until her death during the attack.

Yet Kaiyo’s name had been stricken from the village records; entirely removed as if she had never existed- treatment not unlike that of a traitor’s. 

Uchiha Kaiyo’s name did not even appear on the Memorial Stone.

In the aftermath of the night the Kyuubi attacked the village and the Yondaime fell, the Uchiha Clan had gone from a well-respected Clan to one that was barely tolerated.  Silently blamed for their inaction during the attack, while the greater populace blithely ignored the fact that they were a Clan of _shinobi_ and therefore had to follow orders. 

Still, the Clan had persisted, but within a year of the attacks there were no longer any Uchiha jōunin-sensei, no Uchiha academy teachers, all of the Uchiha Clan members who worked in Cryptology or other specialty departments were slowly let go.  This sharp increase in unemployed or unexpectedly ‘reserve’ Uchiha meant that the Clan had needed to fill the ranks of the Police Force and the Internal Security Force with their own to keep their Clan members working.  This action, of course, causing even _more_ unrest and displeasure as non-Uchiha operatives were let go to make room for Clan members.

A situation that had been beyond ‘disgruntled’.

Under intense scrutiny and reduced to a handful of tasks that most of them were- quite frankly- overqualified for, had led to apathy, monotony, and disgust.

None of which were a good state for shinobi, retired shinobi, or trained civilians to persist in.

The Clan felt trapped and hunted, the former operatives felt cheated and cast aside, and in the midst of all that unpleasantness was Danzō’s ever-paranoid ‘searches’ and the increased- and pointedly non-Uchiha manned- ANBU presence near the Uchiha District.

Oh, and all of the Clan members had been driven back to their ancestral home by one turn or another.  An unprecedented situation as most of the younger members had lived outside the District most of their shinobi lives.  Retired shinobi tended to move back to the District and families with multiple children tended to live close by, if not inside, but the district was actually fairly small for the entire Clan to be living there, as the civilian Uchiha members were usually housed in the District more for protection than anything.  Most of the Uchiha shinobi enjoyed the freedom of having a space in the District to store things or projects but living elsewhere so as not to be volunteered by the Clan Elders for Clan ‘tasks’.

But this……

“ _Thank you_ , Hokage-sama.”  Fugaku managed to keep his voice level, but only just as he bowed deeply before his Hokage- his master, his leader, his _king_ \- for a long moment before he straightened up to his full height, took his marching orders, and departed.

――◊――

Sarutobi stared at the spot where Uchiha Fugaku had once stood for a long moment before he allowed a tired, but fiercely proud smile to take up residence on his weathered face.

The operation was still ongoing and Sarutobi had a sinking suspicion that things were going to get worse before they got better, but the aging Hokage’s heart was full of potent hope.  Tempered by loss and yet buoyed by tentative success, the fragile flame that had seemed on the verge of winking out of existence only a week ago was already a merrily crackling fire.

Sarutobi Hiruzen would stoke that fire to an inferno if it _killed_ him.

 _Besides_.  The Hokage thought somewhat wryly as he turned back to the plethora of loose papers, scrolls, and reports awaiting his perusal on his desk.  _Biwako is no doubt waiting for me with our dearly missed children.  Death would be but a momentary setback, especially now that Tsunade-chan has returned._

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A week after Hikaru’s second brush with death, Kakashi and Hikaru stood in front of the sealed Hatake Clan Grounds.  Well, Kakashi stood in front of the gate with Hikaru held securely against his body with his left arm.

Hikaru _could_ walk, but Kakashi was abusing his parental privileges at the moment.  Thankfully, Hikaru did not seem to mind.

“Well.”  Kakashi said somewhat reluctantly as he faced the faded Clan symbol on the wooden gates.  “Home sweet home, I guess.”

Strands of soft white hair tickled Kakashi’s cheek when Hikaru moved his head to snuggle a bit more firmly against his father’s shoulder.  “We could just stay in your apartment.  Or even in Takeru and I’s.  There’s no need to have our own _compound_ , inu-tou.  Even if it is mostly just grounds.”

Kakashi looked down at his son, coal clashing with viridian as he warred against himself. 

He wanted his son to have an appreciation for the Hatake Clan- even if it only consisted of the two of them at the moment- but Kakashi did not feel quite ready to face all of his old demons just yet.

 _No._   Kakashi thought as he steeled himself.  _I don’t want to give anyone any ground to stand on when it comes to calling me unfit, and Minami’s mother is a vapid old hag_.

“It’s alright.”  He told his son with one of his infamous eye smiles.  “It’ll be a bit rough-”  He explained as he began to channel chakra into the seal that he was standing on- the one that Minato-sensei had placed before the blond had dragged him away from here so very long ago.  “-at first.  I haven’t been back here to do more than maintain the security seals since tou-san’s- well, your jiji’s- death.”  Kakashi told his son as the seal finally sucked up enough chakra to begin to move to the unravelling phase.

Hikaru’s gaze was rather solemn as he pulled back a bit to look his father in the eye.  “Are you sure you’re ready for this, inu-tou?”

Kakashi smiled at his son and reached up to ruffle the boy’s soft hair.  “Anything for you, Puppy.”

Hikaru grinned brightly and threw his arms around his father’s neck.  “We’ll make it, tou-san.”  He told his father with all the certainty of a small child.  “And it won’t be long before this place is home.”

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	10. Baby Steps

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When Itachi was barely old enough to toddle he wandered onto a battlefield.

Fugaku had found his eldest- and only, at the time- child silently sobbing while his Sharingan-red eyes stared unblinkingly at the corpses of both Iwa and Konoha shinobi.  The young father had panicked and, as gently as possible, knocked the small child unconscious while his mind had raced to find a way to fix the problem.

The only pseudo-solution Fugaku had found- buried deep within the archives under the Shrine- was to seal Itachi’s Sharingan.  Fugaku had hesitated to consider the option because every documented case of a Sharingan being sealed also noted that there were long-reaching side-effects.   

Side-effects such as disassociation, anxiety, irrational behavior, apathy, unexpectedly volatile bouts of irritability, and other serious issues that usually precluded the sealed individual from ever being able to fully recover even once the seal was removed.  Compounding those well-documented side-effects were the written records that proved that the younger a Sharingan user was when the seal was applied, the greater the damage sustained to the member’s psyche.

The idea of sealing his son’s Sharingan also left a rather unpleasant Hyūga-esque taste in his mouth.

In the weeks that had immediately followed, though, Itachi had been entirely unable to sleep no matter what Fugaku, Mikoto or any of the other Clan members did. 

Trying to cast a genjutsu with a matured Sharingan only made Itachi’s own Sharingan develop faster since the little boy activated it reflexively to try to defend himself.  It got to the point that Itachi’s body had begun to shut down because the child was using his chakra to keep himself awake.  Itachi’s age had meant that the medics were reluctant to break out the serious sedatives and with Itachi’s innate grasp of his own chakra the little boy was unintentionally negating the milder sedatives that the medics _had_ given him.

Grimly determined to save his child, Fugaku had taken the seal to Minato to look over, to at least try to minimize the side-effects. 

Minato had been far from pleased when he heard the story, but as it was an internal Clan matter the young Hokage had kept his mouth shut.  In the end- though Fugaku knew that the blond had more than likely gotten help from Uzumaki and possibly the Gama Sennin- Minato made a few adjustments that would allow the seal to slowly dissolve over the next decade, making the seal transitional instead of the strictly on-and-off method of the original design.  The idea behind the changes was that a transition would hopefully- and theoretically- lessen the intensity of any side-effects as it never sealed the Sharingan entirely away so much as it baby-blocked it.

Truthfully when Itachi had ‘manifested’ his Sharingan at the age of seven Fugaku had been _terrified_ , but with Minato and Uzumaki’s recent deaths he had not had any sealing expertise to lean on and thus the man had been reduced to fervently hoping that he had not done his son any irreparable harm.

Fugaku carefully observed his eldest as the young teen sat opposite him.  They were inside the den of the main house, surrounded by dark blue and familiar Clan symbols, barely three feet apart, yet Fugaku felt as if his son was sitting on a different plane of existence.

Though the boy’s limbs were loose, there was a weight on his shoulders and in his eyes that made Fugaku terribly angry.  How long had Itachi been so close to his breaking point?  What would have happened to his gentle little boy if Hokage-sama hadn’t noticed the Uchiha Clan’s plight?  Would Itachi have-

“Itachi.”  The man said, a bit more sharply than he had intended _.  It will not come to that_.  Fugaku reminded himself sternly as his son’s dark eyes fluttered open and locked onto his own.  “It has come to my attention that you are not happy in the ANBU Black Ops.”

“I live to serve, Father.”  The teen replied blandly, neither his body nor his eyes giving away any hints as to his inner thoughts.  “I will-“

“Itachi.”  This time Fugaku used a gentler tone, one that his son had- very regrettably- not heard in quite a long time.

The younger Uchiha’s mouth clicked shut and he gave Fugaku an odd stare.

“I realize that things with the Clan have been…..dire for quite some time, son.”  Fugaku continued calmly, his hands clenching as he fought against the parental urge to close the gap between them and comfort his son properly.  “However, Hokage-sama has seen us- has _heard_ us- and we have been absolved.”

Itachi sucked in a sharp breath and leaned forward ever so slightly.

“There will once again be Uchiha jōunin-sensei, Uchiha Barrier operatives, Uchiha Academy sensei, and even Uchiha medics.”  Fugaku continued, some of the wonder, relief, and excitement bleeding into his voice as he informed his Heir of their Clan’s triumphant return to the village’s wider operations.  “The ANBU Black Ops and the Police Force are no longer the only way for an Uchiha to serve our village.”  Fugaku shuffled a few papers around before he looked up and smiled softly at his eldest son.  “Itachi you now have the option to resign from the ANBU and apply for the Konoha Instructor’s Training Program or whatever position within the shinobi forces that you _want_ to pursue as your career path.”

“But Father, the Elders-“

“You leave those old fossils to me, son.”  Fugaku replied firmly, but not unkindly.  “Part of the reason why the Uchiha Clan came together with the Senju nearly a hundred years ago to build this village was so that our children would be able to do more than _fight_ _and die_.”  Fugaku held up his hand for silence and gave his son a firm look.  “You are an incredibly gifted shinobi and I fully expect you to keep your skills sharp, as would be expected of an Uchiha and my Heir.  However, _the situation has changed_.  We are no longer being hunted within our own home.  Hokage-sama has ordered our return to the fold as his shinobi and I _will not_ disappoint his faith in us.  Have I made myself clear?”

“Yes, Father.”  Itachi replied obediently, but Fugaku saw the thoughts whirling behind his son’s dark eyes as Itachi slowly began to latch onto to what Fugaku was trying to tell him.  “May I be excused?”

“You may.”  Fugaku allowed as he held out a paper for Itachi to take with him.

―――◊―――

Fugaku was toweling off after a relaxing bath when he felt his wife’s chakra enter their room.

“Fugaku did you really give Itachi permission to retire from ANBU and pursue a different program?”  Mikoto asked somewhat breathlessly as she came barreling into the bathroom without pausing to knock.  Her dark hair had fallen out of its usual pristine fastenings, framing her lovely face and accentuating the redness around her beautiful dark eyes.

“Yes?”  Fugaku replied somewhat hesitantly, wondering if he had read the situation incorrectly and had somehow upset his eldest son and his wife.

There was another long moment of silence as Mikoto stared at him in utter shock, but before Fugaku could truly begin to panic she threw herself forward and hugged him tightly.  “Thank you.”  She cried against his skin as he wrapped his arms around her and let her cry.  “Thank you, thank you, thank you.”  Mikoto chanted over and over as she continued to tighten her arms around her husband.  “He’s so _happy_ , Fugaku.”  Mikoto pulled back and stole a bit of towel to dry her eyes with before she tosses the damp piece of cloth behind her.  The woman then stepped forward so that her body was flush against her husband’s and then she _smiled_.

_Oh._   Fugaku thought somewhat fuzzily as Mikoto’s next words went right over his dazed head.  _I had forgotten just how stunning she is when she smiles._

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Ino bounced impatiently on her toes, waiting for her Daddy to finish chatting with cousin Takeda so they could finally _go_.

The aquamarine eyed, platinum blonde carefully shifted the basket she was carrying and huffed.  “Daddy~!”  The nearly seven-year-old whined.  “I wanna meet my new cousin!”

Shaking his head in exasperated fondness, Inoichi finished off his conversation with his fellow clansmember and guided his impatient offspring out the front of the Yamanaka Flower Shop, Takeda waving them off with a wry grin.  “Princess, you need to learn patience.”  He grumbled good-naturedly as he took the basket from Ino and reached out a hand for her to latch onto.

“But I’m really excited to meet him!”  Ino chattered cheerfully, swinging their linked hands slightly as she ambled along the bustling streets of Konoha next to her Daddy.  “You said that this new cousin is Uncle Ichiro’s grandson, right?”

“That’s right, princess.  You and Hikaru-kun are second cousins.  Hikaru’s mother- Minami- was the daughter of my brother.”  Inoichi confirmed as he smiled down at his daughter. 

“But why haven’t I ever met her?  And is she even on the Clan register?  I don’t remember a Minami and Auntie Chiyoko made me memorize all the names on the Register since the village’s founding.”  Ino asked, somewhat confused as they made their way through the quitter residential streets.  Well, they were in a mostly older section of shinobi Clan compounds and most of the traffic tended to take place on the rooftops at speeds nearly indeterminable to the human eye.  “And there were lots of names.”  She added somewhat sulkily.

Inoichi very carefully did not allow his displeasure to spill over into his tone or his body language.  “Minami’s mother was an Uchiha.”  He explained as patiently as he could manage as they rounded the last turn to the Hatake compound.  “And we only recently were notified about her existence, so her name and Hikaru’s names were just added to the Register a few weeks ago.”

The little girl tugged on her father’s hand and stopped, propping her free hand on her hip and giving him what she most likely thought was a bossy glare.

Personally, Inoichi thought it was a rather adorable attempt, given Ino’s still babyish face and her cute sundress.

“But Daddy, isn’t that against the Good Faith Agreement?”  Ino asked with a pout, reclaiming her hand from her dad and crossing her arms across her chest.  “That’s the one where the Clans allow for intermarriage or dual-clan parentage, right?  The one that Sarutobi-sama’s father- Sarutobi the thirty-third, right?- had all the Clans agree to in order to prevent blood feuds between Konoha Clans?  Does them not telling us mean that we’re not on good terms with the Uchiha Clan now?”

Inoichi gave Ino a quick side-hug and a proud smile before answering.  “You’re right about the Agreement, princess.  I- and the Clan- are most definitely not thrilled that we were not notified of Minami’s connection to us- she fell in the line of duty a while back- but we’ve decided to put aside the breach in protocol and move forward.”

“I suppose it wouldn’t do us much good to be all mad about it now, huh?”  Ino contemplated as she slid her hand back into her daddy’s and they resumed making their way towards the last Clan compound on the street.  “I mean, since Hikaru-kun is his father’s heir he’ll live with him, obviously.  So even if the Yamanaka pursued the matter with the Uchiha it would be sort of….pointless.”

“Very well-reasoned, princess.”  Inochi told his daughter proudly as they passed through the Hatake Clan gate and headed towards the modest home just beyond.  There were a few other buildings, but it was mostly trees and grass, honestly.  “We certainly don’t want them to think that they could do so again- we missed out on not only a Clan member, but Minami also missed out on Clan training that she was entitled to, training that might have helped her survive longer- but at this point the Uchiha have apologized and both Clans are just choosing to move forward.”

By that point they had walked up the two short steps and arrived at the front door, but before Inoichi could knock, it swung open.

―――ᴖᴗ―――

“Hi!  I’m Yamanaka Ino!  You can just call me Ino.  It’s nice to meet you!”  The blonde girl chirped brightly

Hikaru blinked slowly at the perky blonde and then smiled tentatively as he opened the door wider.  “I’m Hatake Hikaru, you can just call me Hikaru.  We’re cousins, right?”

Ino grinned and bounced inside, cheerfully kicking off her shoes and wrapping him in an exuberant hug.  “You’re so _cute_!”  She squealed as she swung him up and onto her hip, causing him to wrap his arms around her neck to keep his balance.

Still, the bubbly blonde was far nicer than Dudley, so Hikaru thought she might be a cousin he’d actually be happy to be related to.

Even if she was kind of treating him like a baby at the moment.  She was friendly enough for it to not be annoying.

“I’m Yamanaka Inoichi, Ino’s father.  It’s nice to finally meet you Hikaru-kun.”  The elder blond said wryly, stepping inside and setting down a wicker basket before ruffling Hikaru’s hair gently and removing his own footwear. 

“It’s nice to meet you Yamanaka-san.”  Hikaru replied politely only for the elder blond to smile and shake his head lightly.

“Inoichi-oji is fine, Hikaru-kun.”

“Yeah, we’re family!  There’s no need for stuffy titles!”  Ino announced primly, spinning around to get a good look at the inside of the house and laughing at Hikaru’s startled yelp of surprise.  “Wow, you guys _really_ need to do some decorating.”

“Ah, I’m afraid that neither Hikaru nor I have much talent for more than a minimalist theme, Ino-chan.”  Kakashi informed the girl as he entered, wiping his ungloved hands on a rag and nodding to Inoichi in greeting.

“Hmph, good thing you have _me_.”  Ino said with a saucy grin.

Suddenly, Hikaru wasn’t quite so sure he was going to like this new blonde cousin.

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Hiruzen’s rebellious mouth ticked up into a half-smile as he watched his blonde student passionately state her case to the Village Council.

By the Founding Charter the Hokage’s word was irrefutably absolute; there was no higher authority than the Hokage himself within Konoha’s walls. 

However for Konoha to exist in Hi no Kuni the Shodaime- and Uchiha Madara- had needed to negotiate with the Daimyo.  At the time of Konoha’s founding shinobi Clans were little more than super powerful, shadowy mercenaries.  What gave Hashirama and Madara the needed power to enter into negotiations with the Daimyo- on terms that the long-time ruler of Hi no Kuni would respect- was that the Senju and the Uchiha were the two most feared Clans in the region.  Whenever one group would hire the Uchiha for a task their opponents would scramble to hire the Senju.  By the two powerful Clans banding together and presenting the idea of Konoha to the Daimyo they proved that they were not desperate stragglers looking for a refuge so much as two powerful groups who could potentially topple the aristocracy if they were refused.

The Daimyo had been tough to convince- it had taken nearly five years of heavy negotiations, actually- but in the end an ironclad Charter was hammered out between Hi no Kuni and the newly founded Konohagakure.

Shinobi Clans who had long served the Daimyo were given leave to join the newly founded village.  After a period of adjustment- the village infrastructure had to be built- the daimyo could then pay for missions that would allow him to avail himself of the services his Court had long enjoyed.  Granted, these returning shinobi might not be exactly the same, but Konoha’s training regimen had been the result of constant trial-and-error in order to produce well-rounded shinobi that would be a credit to the village as opposed to the sloppily trained, Clan-specific specialists of the previous era.

It had been a difficult process, especially in the early days of the village when newly arriving Clans were still in the process of negotiating with Konoha, wary and mistrustful after centuries of being inclusive and secretive.

Sarutobi Sasuke- Hiruzen’s father- had actually been responsible for negotiating Pacts with no less than thirty-seven Clans of varying sizes.

An important facet of the Pact Treaties was the stipulation that certain amounts of information or techniques that would be shared with all Konoha shinobi.  The idea of sharing techniques among more than just direct allies had been quite the sticking point, as many Clans had only survived due to their information about chakra, jutsu, or techniques. 

In the end the shinobi that had come out of the Konoha Shinobi Academy had been _exceptional_ which was how Konoha had been able to survive, thrive, and carve out a name for themselves.

The Village Council, however, had been the compromise for so many independent Clans with hundreds of years of traditions and unique mindsets to not only have a major voice in matters of inter-village relations but to also settle disputes under the Hokage’s sharp eyes without acting as his direct subordinates.  Every Clan Head of a Recognized Clan had an automatic seat on the Council and it was within the Council’s confines that grievances were aired and sorted through so as prevent instability within the village.

The Nidaime and Hiruzen himself had added certain civilian seats for preeminent merchants or influential Clans whose chakra usages were considered ‘civilian’ but were vital to the village’s wellbeing.

The paranoia of the Clan Wars had never truly died, not really.  Though the secrets of chakra and its manipulation were still heavily guarded, many high-born civilian students who had no inclination to become shinobi still attended the Academy long enough to learn the bare basics of chakra manipulation, which gave them an appreciation for the village’s shinobi and their unique needs.  Even without being able to stick a leaf to their forehead or perform even the simplest jutsu the act of being aware of their chakra- even in an entirely latent sense- gave them a leg up in terms of intuition and critical-thinking.

Granted, it didn’t transform these civilians into flawless businessmen or master strategists, but there was a definitive earnings gap between those who had at least been made aware of their chakra and those who had never heard of such a thing. 

Due to Danzō’s interference, _rats_ had managed to sneak inside the hallowed halls of the Council, but Hiruzen was more than aware of that fact now and was actively working to correct it.

The reason Tsunade was presenting her case about opening a medic nin program separate from the Konoha hospital was due to the fact that training programs for ‘specialists’ needed to be submitted to the Council for approval.  It was partially out of a desire to keep the Hokage’s time unburdened by frivolous or ill-thought out requests and partially so that the shinobi Clans could offer support- through money, supplies, or information- or advice, based on how vital they felt such a program to be to the village’s wellbeing.

“-would disrupt the overall effectiveness of the hospital.”  Tsunade was saying firmly as her amber eyes sparked with determination.  “However, I have a solution.  In the western district- near the Red Light district- there are a pair of apartment buildings that were used back in the Second War.  After the end of the Second War Konoha went through a period of rapid expansion and that area was largely abandoned.” 

Hiruzen observed the room with guarded, shrewd eyes as Tsunade grimaced lightly and tossed her blonde head somewhat challengingly while a few of the Clan Heads began to murmur disapprovingly.

“I know that the area I’m talking about was hit pretty hard during the Kyuubi attack and is in disrepair.”  Tsunade bit out angrily at the patronizing looks a few of them were giving her.  “But I believe that- given a little time and effort- the two old dormitories can be fused together and I can have both a school for medic nin and a research station.”

“Tsunade-hime-“ 

“Look.”  Tsunade snapped fiercely, cutting the Clan Head off efficiently as she tightened her hands into fists.  “I’m going to do this if you like it or not.”  Tsunade raised her voice to speak up over the chatter that broke out around her.  “I am merely presenting this idea so that all of the shinobi Clans might have a chance to be a part of this.  Because _I am going_ to make a school.  _I am going_ to make a place to research new lifesaving techniques.  _I am going_ to take bright-eyed new students from the Academy or the hospital and _I am going_ to suss out rejects or broken shinobi from the underbelly to as well.  _I am going_ to build an intensive medical ninja training program that doesn’t fall under the purview of the already overloaded hospital.  _I am going_ to build a medical research and development program unlike any other that ceaselessly strives to find new, improved, and better ways to save lives.  And even if none of you will assist me I will move forward with this enterprise.”

“You can’t-“

“I _can_.”  Tsunade said fiercely as she took a half step forward and glared ferociously at the Council.  “My Grand-Uncle, the Nidaime, created the STP because he saw shinobi slipping through the cracks in the three-man cell mentorship program and those specialists have become the backbone of our shinobi corps.  He set a precedent and I am more than happy to adapt his idea for my own- and Konoha’s- benefit.”

The mutterings died down a bit, but there was still plenty of patent disapproval in the chamber.

“At the time Uncle Tobirama made the STP medical jutsu were few and far between and medic nin even fewer and farther.”  Tsunade tossed her hair smugly and crossed her arms beneath her breasts.  “I, _personally_ , advanced the field of iryō ninjutsu by leaps and bounds and it saved our asses, _especially_ against Suna and their poison specialists.”

“Very true, Tsunade-sama.”  Yamanaka Inoichi said clearly, cutting through the chatter of the room easily.   The long-haired, blond man gave the Senju Princess a warm smile as he added. “I know _I’m_ alive because of your advancements, at the very least.”

Tsunade nodded lightly in appreciation and glared at those who were still unconvinced.  “This _needs_ to happen.”  Tsunade proclaimed passionately.  “And there has never been a better time than right now.”

“But the costs-“ 

“You’ve already purchased the land, haven’t you Tsunade-sama?”  Nara Shikaku asked from his seat between his two teammates.

Tsunade smirked evilly.

“Troublesome.”  Shikaku muttered as he propped his chin on his hand and stared thoughtfully at the blonde woman.  “Right off the top of my head I can see how this could possibly come about.”

“Shikaku you _can’t_ be serious-“

“One: every Clan present commissions one or two D-Rank missions for gēnin teams to help clear the area.”  Shikaku drawled steadily without acknowledging the detractor.  “There is a fair bit of land in that area and once the ruined buildings are out of the way there will be plenty of ground for training and growing needed herbs for both training and research purposes.”

“This would also help us raise more money for this quarter.”  One of the merchants mused aloud, his sharp eyes glancing back and forth between Shikaku’s relaxed form and Tsunade’s impatient one.  “There are several projects that could use the additional funding.”

“Aah.”  Shikaku grunted agreeably as he continued on.  “Then comes the construction.  An expensive and time-consuming process for certain-“

“The Uchiha Clan offers our craftsmen for the task.”  Uchiha Fugaku spoke up, surprising the hell out of everyone and causing all eyes to turn to him.

Fugaku only had eyes for the blonde Senju and his Hokage, however.

“The Uchiha craftsmen are expensive.”  One of the Clan Heads sneered scoffed disdainfully.  “Surely you don’t expect us to believe that this is _anything_ other than a ploy-“

“For free.”  Fugaku continued steadily.  “The labor, at least.”

“Thank you, Uchiha-san.”  Tsunade said with a small smile, her golden eyes smug as she glared down her remaining dissenters.

Hiruzen only gave the Clan Head a brief nod, but his dark eyes blazed with pride as he watched the isolated Clan take such a big step back into the heart of the village’s operations.

“Then the Hyūga Clan will cover the cost of the materials.”  Hyūga Hiashi stated decisively, never one to let the Uchiha to do anything seen as being ‘better’ than the Hyūga.

“The Aburame will provide appropriate funding for the first year.”  Aburame Shibi said in a level tone of voice.  “Unfortunately none of our Clan talents are predisposed to directly aid in the renovations.”

“Then the Akimichi will provide brunch for the workers!”  Akimichi Chōuza chipped in jovially.  “We can’t let such a fine group work so hard on empty stomachs!”

“Thank you!”  Tsunade beamed at all four Noble Clan Heads thankfully.  “The Senju will, of course, turn the land over to the Hokage so that it will be neutral ground for all Clans.”

“Well, that’s settled.”  Shikaku said somewhat drolly.  “The third point was startup funds, but the Aburame beat me to it.”  Shikaku nodded briefly at his fellow Clan Head before continuing.  “I take it your medic nin are not going to be the weak links of their teams?”

Tsunade’s smirk was positively _unholy_. 

“If I might, Tsunade-sama, Hokage-sama?”  Inoichi asked politely after a few moments.

“Yes, Inoichi-kun?”  Hiruzen replied curiously.

“Forgive me if I overstep any boundaries, but might I suggest that the Academy be on the lookout for potential iryō nin?”  Inoichi firmly shoved the idea of his little Ino aside so he could make his point as objectively as possible.  “I know that there are kunoichi classes for the girls, but perhaps a unit could be added to assess those with potential as future medical ninja and arrangements could be made for some early training?  I know that Tsunade-sama made a comment about the Academy, but adding a unit on medic nin during the early years of the Academy could garner more attention to the field, as opposed to later when the students start learning jutsu.”

“Such as chakra control and basic first aid?”  Shikaku took up thoughtfully as he leaned back and pondered the suggestion.  “Even if they do not go on to become medical ninja, early training in control refinement or anatomy can only be a good thing.  Perhaps a work study program of some sort for the older years or those who truly show an interest?”

“Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, let us take a vote on Tsunade-chan’s proposal and allow it to either move forward or be tabled.”  Hiruzen broke in firmly, anxious to get the meeting over with as it was quite late.

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“She’s a _slave driver_.”  Naruto groaned dramatically as he flopped onto the grass next to Hikaru and Takeru.

“It’s not that bad, ‘Ru.”  Hikaru admonished absently as he worked on the wooden puzzle his father had gotten to entertain him.

“Says the guy who isn’t allowed to help.”  Takeru muttered somewhat darkly from Hikaru’s other side.  “I’m telling ya we’re doing more work than both of the gēnin teams _combined_.”

“I’m not allowed to help ‘cause inu-tou and ‘Nade-nee are paranoid.”  Hikaru replied with a huff, never taking his eyes off the puzzle in his hands.  “But yeah, I think you are.  You guys are getting _way_ better at wall walking though.”

“We are, aren’t we?”  Naruto cheered with a grin, lopping over onto his back and looking up at the cleat sky with a brilliant grin on his face.  “It’s kind of easier than the stupid leaf exercise.”

“It uses more chakra and you can move around.”  Takeru added helpfully as he closed his eyes and dozed lightly.  “So that’s probably why.”

“Probably.”  Naruto said agreeably.  “So, what’s it like living with your dad?”

“It’s brilliant.”  Hikaru said with a shy, excited grin.  “We’re still cleaning up the house- and I’ve got seedlings in containers again because we had to leave our rooftop garden behind.  Inu-tou says that the garden is really helping the patrol teams keep tabs on the visitor’s section of the market district, though.  The Aburame, especially.”

Takeru whined a little at the reminder of the loss of their garden and both the other boys gave the brunet commiserating glances. 

“-but even though we’re doing a lot of boring housework- Ino-chan comes over about every day to help ‘decorate’; have I mentioned that that girl is a pint-sized dictator?  She’s still pretty fun, though!- and stuff, it’s still great!”  Hikaru finished in an awed tone of voice.  Hikaru shook himself and glanced at his friends somewhat guiltily.  “How’s life with the Taskmaster?”

“I _heard_ that, brat!”  Tsunade bellowed from somewhere nearby, causing all three boys to wilt slightly.

“About like that.”  Naruto said glumly, but with a reluctant grin tugging at his lips.  “She might be an old hag, but she doesn’t miss anything.”

A moment later a pebble sailed through the air and neatly smacked against the blond’s forehead, causing aforementioned blond to topple over from his half raised position and grumble about ‘old ladies’ and their ‘stupid behavior correction tactics’.

Hikaru arched a questioning eyebrow at Takeru, who grinned widely.

“Tsunade-nee is…..imaginative.”  Takeru trilled cheerfully.  “Naruto hasn’t quite gotten with the program yet.”

Naruto muttered something about ‘revenge’ and ‘awesome’ but Hikaru was sort of reluctant to get any details.

“Oh, yeah.  I wanted to tell you guys I was sorry.”  Hikaru said after a few moments of comfortable silence had passed.

“For what?”  Takeru asked, his nose wrinkled in confusion.

Hikaru smiled sheepishly and ran a hand through his newly shortened, spikey mess of hair.  “Inu-tou tested me and we found out that I inherited the Hatake chakra-”

“Hatake chakra?”  Naruto asked, eyes bright an interested.  “Is it anything like the Uzumaki Clan’s chakra?  Apparently our chakra- well, we not only have a lot of it, it’s super po-por-“

“Potent?”

“Yeah!  That’s it!  Potent!  Thank Hikaru!”  Naruto exclaimed cheerfully, sitting up on his elbows to better see his friends.  “It’s part of why we tend to live so long and heal so fast.”

“Awesome.”  Hikaru said with a grin.  “I wish I had some of that Uzumaki healing.”

“You and me both.”  Takeru muttered under his breath, glancing at the bandages peeking out of Hikaru’s shirt with a scowl.

“Yeah, yeah.”  Hikaru replied, rolling his eyes at Takeru’s mother-henning.  “At any rate the Hatake Clan chakra is dense.”  Hikaru glanced between his friends as he considered how to phrase his new discovery.  “I kinda wonder if we were a branch of the Uzumaki or something, now that I think about it.  Anyways, Hatake chakra tends to be dense but we have really good control.  Inu-tou says that his chakra ‘reserves’ are actually pretty small for a jōunin but since he has nearly perfect control he can throw around a lot more jutsu than people with twice his reserves can.  Also, using the right metals, we can sort of extend our reach with a weapon and there are a few Clan techniques, but we haven’t gotten to those just yet.”

“If you have good control, wouldn’t that make you a prime candidate for Tsunade-nee’s medic program?”  Takeru asked curiously.

“Not really.”  Hikaru admitted with a slight grimace.  “Medical chakra is finely balanced and, quite frankly, my chakra is far too dense for me to be able to use medical ninjutsu properly.  Even with my natural affinity for chakra control maintaining the sort of precision I’d need to keep from accidentally overloading someone else’s chakra network- and therefore throwing them into a coma- would be…..exhaustive.”

“So, kind of a double-edged sword then?”

“Yeah.”  Hikaru replied somewhat sheepishly.  “Great for battle and other things with a slightly larger margin of error, but not really workable as a medic.”

“Cool!”  Naruto suddenly crowed excitedly, pumping a fist in the air energetically.  “We’re gonna be the best team _ever_!”

Hikaru and Takeru glanced at each other and grimaced lightly, but they didn’t have the heart to break into Naruto’s excited stream of chatter.

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	11. Low Tide

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Hikaru’s sock-clad feet barely made a sound as he padded across the gleaming wooden floors of his home.

The Hatake Clan Main House- where he and his father had taken up residence- was a single-story home, but the inside was quite a bit larger than the outside suggested.  The Clan symbol looked like a tilted square with nine smaller squares neatly outlined on the inside and was prominently displayed on the gates. 

_“Back before the founding of the Hidden Villages the Hatake Clan were farmers for the most part.  That’s where our Clan symbol comes from- it’s supposed to resemble a patch of tended farmland.”  Kakashi told his son while they scrubbed down the gate and cleared creeping greenery off the retaining wall at the front of the estate.  “But one day a skirmish between two Clans spilled over onto Hatake farmland and Hatake Ichiro defended himself from the victorious shinobi.”_

_“They attacked him?”  Hikaru asked curiously, swiping at his forehead and deciding to take a short break before his over-protective father decided that he had ‘overtired’ himself and cut their project short for the day._

_“Aah.”  Kakashi replied, fingers moving deftly as he cleared away greenery.  “He impressed the man- who had not realized that our ancestor was not an enemy, just a man at the wrong place at the wrong time- and our Clan was brought under the protection of a shinobi Clan.  It didn’t take our patrons long to discover our partiality for battle and so we began to learn the shinobi arts ourselves.”  Kakashi turned and smiled at his son, ruffling the boy’s hair lightly as he finished his storytelling.  “Eventually our patron Clan was taken out, but by then we were strong enough to defend our homes and our farmland by ourselves.  We were never a large Clan- I think we had about fifty members at our peak- but we were powerful enough to make a name for ourselves and we were among the first of the Clans to be invited in after the Senju and the Uchiha and their allied Clans.”_

Past the gates the land gently sloped, leading up to the porch.  Like most of the older Clan homes the foundation was built up a bit and the west side of house jutted out over a lovely water garden.  The front half of the house had sliding doors, while the back half had more modern room designations.  The overall color schemes were earthy- though Ino had added quite a few splashes of color; for as young as she was the girl was quite the decorator- and Hikaru quite liked the warm feel of his new home.

There were a few other houses scattered on the land, but it was a mostly open grassy area- with several training posts or targets- until it tapered off into woodlands, which eventually ran into Nara land. 

Hikaru was jolted out of his musings by his arrival at the kitchen.  Ino had demanded that they paint the upper part of the walls- the cabinets and the bottom half of the room were a dark, stained wood- a cheery yellow color and the pictures she had unearthed from storage broke up the color enough that it was a pleasant aura instead of an overpowering shock of brightness.

The three-and-a-half-year-old thought the yellow stepstool was a little too much, but it had flowers painted onto it and Ino had _insisted_.

Hikaru hummed happily, enjoying the first rays of sunlight as he carefully pulled down utensils and ingredients.

‘ _Miso soup- oh good we have eggplant still!- and a couple of eggs- maybe some yogurt with bananas?’_ Hikaru thought as he briskly set the water to boil and cubed some tofu.  Miso soup was rather easy- especially since Hikaru bought the miso part instead of fermenting the bean paste himself- but he had recently learned that breakfast was especially important for shinobi.  According to the formula inu-tou had taught him, while at home a shinobi’s intake should be forty-twenty-forty. 

_“Truthfully there are formulas for a shinobi’s daily caloric intake, but they are all flawed in one way or another.”  Kakashi explained to his son while they put together a grocery shopping list on afternoon.  “But shinobi are far more active than the majority of civilians and even using the smallest amount of chakra takes quite a bit of energy- so I would suggest at least four thousand calories a day.  Especially as you are young yet and children tend to pad up a bit before they go through growth spurts.”  Kakashi reached out and tweaked Hikaru’s nose playfully.   “So unless you want to be shorter than Ino forever, I suggest eating heartily.  And quite frankly a couple extra pounds can come in handy during particularly troublesome missions.”_

“Morning, Puppy.”  Kakashi’s sleep-roughed voice washed over Hikaru pleasantly.

“Morning, inu-tou!”  Hikaru chirped cheerfully, ignoring his father’s grunt of displeasure with practiced ease- Sharingan no Kakashi was _not_ a morning person- while he deftly dished up breakfast and set it down on the table.  “Am I going to be helping ‘Nade-nee again today?  You said that you had a mission…?”  Hikaru’s voice trailed off as he slid into his seat and fixed curious eyes onto his still half-asleep parent.

“I do have a mission, but I don’t leave until tonight- well early in the morning, really.”  Kakashi informed his son with a grin, reaching over to ruffle Hikaru’s messy locks just because he could.  “Today it’s just going to be me and you, but we do have some things to talk about.”

“Like what?”  Hikaru asked curiously, digging into his apricot-garnished yogurt with delight.

“Well, we have to decide where you’re going to stay while I’m gone.”  Kakashi held up a hand and gave his son a stern glance when the child began to protest the statement.  “I know that you and Takeru were living on your own, but what you _didn’t_ know was that the apartment you guys chose was under surveillance.”

Hikaru- momentarily discarding of his immediate objections- blinked slowly.  “What?”

“Did you really think that the Hokage would let Academy students live on their own without any supervision?  Even with the accountability classes they require before they allow you access to your pre-gēnin stipends?”  Kakashi shook his head lightly and ruffled his son’s hair again, ignoring Hikaru’s half-hearted protests.  “Patrols- especially the nighttime ones- are notified of Academy students who live on their own in their routes.  The shinobi- only chūnin and above are assigned to patrols, by the way- routinely check on these students and the Internal Security Force performs a ‘wellness check’ if the patrols or the Academy notice any problems or struggles.”  Kakashi took another bite of his breakfast and grinned at his son’s grouchy expression.  “That is in addition to the monthly inspections-“

“Monthly inspections?”  Hikaru piped up with a frown as he swirled his soup around and scrunched up his nose in concentration.  “ _What_ monthly inspections?”

“Oh, right.”  Kakashi amended somewhat sheepishly, giving his son a rueful grin.  “The monthly inspections of pre-gēnin residences done by the chūnin assigned to the Oversight Commission’s Development Detachment.  They slip in and inspect the places and write up a report.”  Kakashi slurped up the last of his soup and moved over to the stove for seconds.  “The Academy can assign supplementary classes to students who need extra help as needed.”

“Is that why Takeru is missing a class that Naruto _swore_ up and down that he had to take last year?”  Hikaru asked, sudden comprehension causing him to straighten slightly as he leaned forward expectantly, the kitchen window allowing the early morning light to illuminate his attentive expression.

“Most likely.”  Kakashi admitted to his son, sitting back down and digging into his second pass of breakfast.  “If you two hadn’t lived so close to Naruto they would have most likely made up excuses for you and Takeru’s apartment to be inspected more often, but with Naruto being watched by former operatives of ANBU or retired shinobi, there were enough eyes on you guys that the ISF’s Wellness inspectors felt comfortable with the standard arrangement, despite your age.”

“Huh.”  Hikaru muttered, not sure how he felt about that information.  On one hand, it made a fair bit of sense, as no matter how smart he was- thinking that they would let a three-year-old and a six-year-old live entirely alone, without supervision- was just stupid.  On the other hand- well, he felt sort of ridiculous for not realizing that said system existed.

Kakashi gently ruffled his son’s hair again- it was baby soft and ridiculously fluffy!- and smiled, his mask around his neck as usual since it was just the two of them.  “Don’t stress over it, Puppy.  No matter how smart you are- and you’re one smart cookie!- you’re still just a little guy.”  Kakashi grinned even more when his cute little son tried to glare at him.  “If you _had_ noticed that there were people keeping an eye on you then they wouldn’t have been doing their jobs.”  Kakashi slurped down the last of his soup before setting the bowl back down on the table and mopping up the last few drops of liquid with a scrunched up piece of toast. 

Hikaru slouched back in his seat, crossed his arms, and pouted.  Mentally, he chided himself for ever thinking that there wouldn’t be _some_ sort of oversight, despite the amount of freedom and autonomy granted to Konoha’s children. 

It was a lesson learned- _Don’t get complacent_.  He told himself firmly as his father continued to speak, giving him a cheery eye-smile all the while.  _Most often it’s the details or the overlooked that foils even the most cunning and ambitious of plans._

“The system has been in place since Konoha’s founding, puppy.” Kakashi informed his cute, pouting puppy with a grin.  “It was one of the very few, mind you- things that Uchiha Madara and Senju Tobirama ever agreed on, actually.  My tou-san- your jiji- always said that it was a point of pride for the Uchiha Clan to have been entrusted with the safekeeping of Konoha’s children.  If you go inside the Police Force Headquarters you’ll find the ‘observation and safeguarding of Konoha’s vulnerable assets’ as part of the founding mandate of the Police Force.  It’s in the little side room off the main entryway that talks about the history.”  Kakashi shrugged and polished off his toast stack.  “I vaguely remember going to tour it as an Academy student, but I’m not sure if they still do that or not.”

Hikaru muttered a bit more, annoyed, but grudgingly accepted his dad’s reasoning.  “I’ll have to remember that. Maybe I can con Ino into taking me?”  Hikaru shook his head and tried to get the conversation back on track.  “So what are my options?  In terms of who I can stay with while you’re gone?”  He asked, trying to keep the sulk out of his voice that his dad was going to be gone.

Again.

The Hokage had actually been very accommodating in terms of just using his dad for short missions while they were getting to know each other and trying to figure this ‘family’ thing out, Hikaru knew, but with the still-tense situation with Cloud and other things he wasn’t privy to, Hokage-sama still needed Kakashi in the field more than Hikaru liked.

“Well.”  Kakashi graciously allowed the subject to change, but his grin informed his son that the elder Hatake had caught on to what he was attempting to do.  “There’s Minami’s mother-“

“No.”  Hikaru breathed in horror, his eyes going wide as he waved his hands around frantically.  “No, no- just, _nonono_!”

“Duly noted.”  Kakashi drawled dryly, a wry grin twisting at his lips.  “Then there’s the Yamanaka.  I know you and Ino-chan get on pretty well, but she’s in the Academy for most of the day and Inoichi-san has been helping out with breaking the conditioning of the former ROOT operatives- among other classified projects- so he’s pretty busy.“

“Bah.”  Hikaru huffed grouchily.  “Inoichi-oji-san is pretty cool and Ino-chan is a lot of fun- even if she does treat me like a _baby_ \- but the rest of the Clan are pretty spread out and busy.”  Hikaru fluttered his hands around as he floundered for the right words.  “Don’t get me wrong- they’re almost all nice- but they’re just….”  Hikaru’s voice trailed off and he shrugged uncomfortably.  “I dunno- indifferent?  Disinterested?”

Kakashi flicked Hikaru’s nose lightly- causing the boy’s guilty expression to change to a mildly disgruntledly one.  “It’s ok, Hikaru.  The members of the Yamanaka Clan tend to spend most of their time helping their allies- the Akimichi and the Nara- when not performing their official duties or oath-bound duties to the Sarutobi Clan; you miss out on most of that as you are more of a Hatake- possibly even Uchiha- than a Yamanaka.”  Kakashi pushed his plate back a bit and smiled kindly at his son.  “Inoichi-san knows about your rather unique mind-link ability, but we’re keeping that information to ourselves otherwise.  Unfortunately you don’t seem to possess the aptitude needed for the Mind-Transfer Jutsu, so that limits a lot of what you can do as a Yamanaka.  There’s still plenty for you to learn from your relatives, of course, but for the most part you’re just another village kid to most of that arm of your family.”

“And Inoichi-oji-san is mostly interested in me because my mom was his niece, right?”  Hikaru mused somewhat wistfully.

He loved, more than he could ever express, having a living parent.  Family that _wanted_ him.  And though it was obvious to the portion of him that remembered being Harry- and clung tightly to Harry’s memories, so as never to forget how far he’d come to get here- that Kakashi was quite obviously no Arthur and Molly Weasley, in Hikaru’s eyes his dad was perfect just because of how hard he tried.

Even when Kakashi was bone-tired and still smelled of blood and battle, he would smile tenderly at Hikaru and ruffle his hair and scoop him up into strong arms and hold onto him as if _Hikaru_ were everything good and right in the world.

And those moments meant……….well, _everything_ , really- to both Harry and Hikaru.

“Yes and no.”  Kakashi replied easily, trying to phrase his words right, but also not sparing any efforts to sugar-coat anything.  He had always hated it when people had tried to that to him as a child and he surmised that his son was enough like him to be similar.  “Inoichi-san is the Clan Head, so he would have been interested in you anyway.  Your unique manifestation of the Mind-Transfer Jutsu and the personal connection just makes that interest a bit more focused.”

“I suppose.”  Hikaru mused thoughtfully, the room plunging into silence for a few moments before Hikaru shrugged.  “It is what it is, I guess.  Ino-chan’s pretty cool, though.  Even if she does treat me like a baby.”

“Ah, yes.  Kami forbid.”  Kakashi muttered, dry as dust.

“So, next option?”

“Weeeell……”

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Hiruzen stood before the large window in his office, contently watching his citizens scurry around in the early morning light on the streets below.  Of course, a good portion of his faithful shinobi were also awake, but most of their traffic occurred on the rooftops, nearly too fast for the average civilians to see.

_You would be so proud of her, Biwako._ He thought with an aching sort of fond sorrow as the sun finally broke free of Konoha’s vast, reaching treeline and faithfully spilled her warm gaze onto his wakening village.

Because he knew what to look for, Hiruzen could see the slight, nearly imperceptible wavering in the light as it passed over the dilapidated, largely abandoned, western commercial district.  Or, what _had been_ the dilapidated, largely abandoned, western commercial district, and was now the home of Tsunade’s newly legitimized Medical Research, Advancement and Iryō-nin Specialized Training Division, or MRT Division, for short.

Hiruzen’s wizened eyes traced the layout of his village with an affection only a man who had spent over fifty years and two world-wide shinobi wars as her leader could achieve. 

Konoha had been built defensively, and as Senju-Uzumaki Mito had largely been invested in the creation of Konoha’s Barrier, a great deal of Uzumaki sealing methodology had been applied to the village’s overall design.

Uzushiogakure had been built into and onto the jagged line of an unforgiving mountain range that led to a series of natural harbors that were surrounded by merciless whirlpools.  Mito-sama had taken that design- with the blessing of her father and the Uzumaki Elders- and adapted it for use in Konoha, complete with the fūinjutsu needed to make a flexible, clever Barrier to both protect the village from an all-out assault and track unwanted pests.  Instead of using the fully spiraling designs of Uzushio, Mito had used half-crescent designs and intricately linked them together to form the full spirals needed for the fūinjutsu to take root.

Hashirama- always willing to assist in any way he could- had carved the heart of the village’s design into the bedrock.  His Mokuton had safeguarded and supported Mito’s complex, exceptional sealing arrays for over a hundred years. 

_“Chakra is life; chakra is blood; chakra is thought; chakra is action.”_   Biwako had had those words carved into the curve of her spine, just as Mito-sama had before her.  The master array to the Barrier that Biwako had faithfully carried in her master’s place, once Mito-sama’s health had started to wane and the stalwart woman had wanted to give Kushina-chan as much time as possible in Uzushio; loathe to pass on her burden even a single moment earlier than she could manage.

There was a reason as to why Konoha had so many parks.  As to why the village’s winding roads were made the way they were.  Why the training grounds for the youngest and generally clumsiest of Konoha’s students were inside the village walls.

Every person inside the village contributed to her defense under the flawless fūinjutsu Barrier of Senju-Uzumaki Mito.

Then the Kyūbi had been unleashed and the demonic fox’s corrosive chakra had sunk its unforgiving hold into Konoha’s heart and in a single night the Barrier that had been Konoha’s secret greatest, most valuable weapon had all but disappeared. 

Just like Biwako.  Just like Minato.  Just like Kushina.

The Barrier Division had done its level best, Hiruzen knew, but the new incarnation of the Barrier that had been cobbled together in the aftermath of that night had been a pale, cheap imitation of the original.  Especially with the loss of Mito, Kushina, and Biwako.  Jirāiya was a brilliant Seal Master in his own right, but even he could only unravel a smidgen- scarcely a drop- of what they had salvaged from the few intact sections that managed to survive.

But now, with Tsunade having recognized young Takeru’s necklace as an Uzumaki Heirloom Cache, the original Barrier was making a comeback.

Starting with the lands that the MRT Division now stood and half of the western Red Light District.

It would take years- decades, even- for the Barrier to become formidable enough to be reasonably compared to the original.  But with Tsunade and Jirāiya’s formal fūinjutsu training coupled with Takeru- and Naruto’s, somewhat surprisingly- natural comprehension for the art of fūinjutsu, there was _hope_.

Hope that Hiruzen had thought he had buried with his wife and the couple that had been as dear to them as their own Clan members.

And in the aftermath of exposing such a rampant corruption within his own camp, Hiruzen took solace in the knowledge that there was still time for him to make things right.

And that hope was precious.  It was worth marshalling his weary bones for yet another long, thankless battle against the monsters that found refuge in the deepest part of the night.

_Lend me your strength, my beloved Biwako.  Minato-kun.  Kushina-chan.  Tobirama-sensei.  Hashirama-sensei.  Mito-sama.  Kagami-kun.  So that I might see this through to the end._

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Orōchimaru’s lips twisted into a snarl as his temper snapped and he hurled the table he’d been working over at the wall.

That was the third table he’d wrecked this week, some analytical part of him noted.  But most of his mind was focused on the raging maelstrom that was his thoughts.  Ever since his encounter with his former teammates and his teacher- and that little _brat_ \- he had been unable to relegate himself back into calm detachment with a side of scheming.

Truthfully, he hated it.  This.  This unwanted emotional turmoil.

From the time he was very young he had relied on the cues of others to gauge what was ‘right’ and ‘wrong’.  It wasn’t that he didn’t feel- because he did, no matter how hard he tried to rid himself of such foolish weakness- but, rather, he didn’t understand the constant double standards of most people.

Why was it wrong to cut up one’s own people but perfectly fine to cut up prisoners of war?

Both had families.  Both had things they would fight and die for.  Both felt pain, hunger, and fear.

Yet one was hated and despised, but the other was seen as ‘necessary’ and ‘acceptable’, but in the end the results were essentially the same.  Bloodlines always made his experiments go awry and thus needed intensive testing beyond the norm for shinobi, but advancements were advancements- and weren’t shinobi _supposed_ to suffer for their village?  Weren’t their bodies property of the kage?  The bodies of Clan members were considered ‘Clan property’ so wasn’t it the same principle when applied to the leader of a shinobi village?

Orōchimaru put his hands against the cool stone of the wall and let his dark hair hang like an inky curtain around his face.

In the back of his mind, the chakra impression of the original owner of this body seemed to pity him.

Orōchimaru snarled and lashed out with his own chakra, quieting the impression’s weak presence, but the action brought him no feeling of superiority.  No smug feeling of accomplishment and victory.

His breathing hitched as a memory- that _dammed_ memory- flitted through his mind’s eye.

_“Never gonna see them again if you don’t greet Death like a friend.”_

If it had just been the words, Orōchimaru could have filed away the comment and shaken off the foreboding chill the words had sparked within him.  He had been a shinobi for nearly his entire life, dancing with foreboding feelings was an old game that meant little to him.

But the image…….

As if it had been branded onto his mind by a higher power- which he didn’t believe in- there was the image of a Being garbed in black.  A rather unassuming figure to someone who had walked into the darkest monster dens and emerged their king, but the power of the Being…….

Every time he thought of it- and it was frustratingly often, no matter what techniques he used to suppress the memory- there was a nearly maddening sense of fear followed by an appallingly potent sense of peace.

Orōchimaru could almost see them, his parents, just beyond the Being’s shoulder.  His mother with her sharp lines and vicious wit and his father with his unnatural grace and light but devastating strikes.  He could nearly reach out and stroke the scales of his mother’s cherished summons, the one she always left with him whenever she and his father left the village- Kimitsuki-hime, the opalescent snake that glowed like a guardian spirit under the light of the moon, her feathery-looing hood folding gracefully around her head like a veil.  She had been Orōchimaru’s playmate and caretaker for most of his childhood, as no one had truly cared about the small, weird family of misfits and had been more than happy to pretend that they didn’t exist.

Then had come the devastating day when his mother had died while on a mission. 

He and Kimitsuki-hime had been playing Snakelings Among the Grass in the garden, a game wherein Orōchimaru would try to hide from her or, alternately, try to find her among the thick foliage of the southern part of their land.  Orōchimaru had just snuck up on her left side, intending to herd her away from the water- she had been part fish, he would forever swear- when she had suddenly reared up, her hood flared wide in aggression as her bright blue eyes glared murder at an unseen opponent.

Then she had looked at him for a single, brief moment.  Her eyes glazed with pain and her lower body writhing in agony before she simply collapsed, like a puppet whose strings had been careless cut by an unfeeling artist.

Orōchimaru had buried her with his mother.

But after all these years, all this time- to be so close, and yet so far from those who had been his entire world was maddening.  He had thought, of course, for a moment, that his team- Jirāiya and Tsunade and Sarutobi-sensei- would be an acceptable alternative, until he could find a way to ensure that he met his parents and Kimitsuki-hime again, but then they had shown- they had _all_ shown- that he was only worth their attention when he was making the conscious effort to be who they thought he was, and when he slipped, when he failed to be that- well, he failed to be relevant.  Failed to be important.

(Failed to be wanted.  Just like that little boy who had spent nearly three weeks in an empty house with only a dead snake and the crushing certainty that his mother was dead.  He had hoped and prayed and _pleaded_ for his father’s safe return- had fasted for such a thing, forgoing both food and water for what felt like an eternity- but when the Uchiha Military Police had finally come knocking on his door, he had learned the heartbreak of false hope.)

Orōchimaru grit his teeth in rage as tears gathered in his eyes and dripped down his cheeks while the haunting image stayed fixed in his mind’s eye, and with every passing second his tenuous hold on his sanity slipped further and further from his metaphoric grasp.

_This is all that brat’s fault._   A part of him whispered cruelly, the sibilant consonants sliding through his thoughts like a poison through blood.  _If we could just get to him and cut him open, we could discover-_

XX-XX

Down the hall, the occupants of the dingy, dismal cells shuddered in terror as a malevolent laughter cut through the still air.

“It’s one of the bad days.”  A scarred, filthy, nearly skeletal man whispered through cracked, bloody lips.  “We should hide the little ones.”

One of the more lucid women nodded and began quietly shuffling about the smaller bodies.

In the end, it didn’t matter.  None of them lived to see another sunrise.

―――ᴖᴗ―□―∞―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞―≡―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―◊―――

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ―――ᴖᴗ―□―∞―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞◊―●―○ᴖᴗ―□―∞―≡―◊―●―○―ᴖᴗ―◊―――  
> Author’s Notes:  
> I hope you enjoyed this! I have plans for Orōchimaru, so no rants about ‘cookie cutter’ villains, alright?
> 
> Harry and Neville have both been touched by Death, and while I’ve chosen to make that fact unknown to them, there will be times when you can see the ‘unseen hand of fate’ sort of….tweak things a bit.
> 
> I think we all have, at one point, touched someone else’s life in a manner that was rather brief, and perhaps seemingly insignificant for us, but was monumental for them. 
> 
> Orōchimaru’s spiraling has a purpose, I swear!
> 
> Also, I am still terribly behind on replying to all the kind people who have left me lovely comments. 
> 
> Please know that I cherish these comments and they really, really make me happy~!
> 
> Sorry I'm a socially inept, reclusive weirdo.


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